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The specification for the Pharmacy Contraceptive Service has been launched for pharmacy contractors to download from the NHSBSA website. However, the service will not start on 11th January 2023, as originally planned, but it is expected to commence in early 2023, revealed the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC). It added: "The exact start date is yet to be agreed, as now the service specification has been published, community pharmacy IT system suppliers need time to develop support for the service, so this is available to contractors from the service commencement date." Commenting on the publication of the service specification, Alastair Buxton, Director of NHS Services, at PSNC said: "When time in their busy professional lives allows, the publication of the service specification ahead of the start of the new service provides contractors and their teams with an opportunity to learn more about it and to consider whether it is something they will have the capacity to provide in due course.

The new Smoking Cessation Service (SCS) will commence on March 10, 2022, allowing community pharmacy contractors to register to provide the service on the NHS Business Services Authority's (NHSBSA) Manage Your Service (MYS) portal from March 1, 2022. This is the second of the two new Advanced Services to be introduced this financial year, after the Hypertension case-finding service, which were agreed outcomes from negotiations for Year 3 of the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework. Since the service is an Advanced service, contractors are free to decide if they wish to provide it, as most would be busy completing work for the Pharmacy Quality Scheme 2021/22 alongside winter-related workload, the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee said. Therefore, those who decide to start this service should consider the likelihood of receiving sufficient referrals to make provision of the service worthwhile, the PSNC said.

The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) is calling on NHS England and its member to pause and reflect before further implementing the pharmacy contraception service. NPA board met on Tuesday (25 April) to discuss the Pharmacy Contraception Service and the board decided that - with the community pharmacy sector at breaking point - it cannot support the immediate roll out of this service. The association believes that with no new funding for the service, and all existing funds in effect already allocated to other pharmacy activity, any payments to the sector for delivery of the oral contraception service will ultimately be clawed back by NHS England. Tweeting after the meeting yesterday, the NPA said: "We can't tell pharmacy owners what they can and can't do. But we can tell them the facts; fact number one is that with no new funding currently available everyone will be a loser from the implementation of this service on the current terms." NPA Vice-Chair Jay Badenhorst added: "We cannot be expected to take on more and more services without the increase in funding necessary to deliver them effectively. Meanwhile, taking on additional work when current workload already exceeds capacity risks impacting negatively on the overall quality of care people experience in pharmacies. We still believe this could, in future, be a great new pharmacy service, but not without the extra funding necessary to deliver it safely and effectively. We want to offer women this extra support, but if it's worth doing it's worth doing properly."

The government has extended VAT exemption from Monday (1 May) on healthcare services carried out by pharmacy staff under the supervision of pharmacists. HM Revenue and Customs has issued a note detailing the change to the VAT treatment of medical services. The Government said this will bring the VAT treatment of pharmacists in line with other registered health professionals providing medical services to the public. The Pharmaceutical services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) said: "This is something that PSNC has been seeking Government agreement on for a long time, including in recent CPCF negotiations." PSNC believes that the extension of this VAT exemption will help as community pharmacy businesses try to make better use of the skill mix in their teams both now and in the future. "Not only does it enable contractors to review the VAT status of any locally commissioned services currently provided by non-registered pharmacy staff but also, in time, it could be used to amend nationally commissioned services to allow support staff to provide certain parts. For example, following a recent amendment to the service Directions, pharmacy technicians are now able to perform blood pressure checks as part of the Hypertension Case-Finding Service and deliver the Smoking Cessation Service.

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Pharmacies and other spaces should be able to facilitate the provision of health care to bring services closer to patients and reduce demands on general practice, suggested a report by Tony Blair Institute. In a paper 'Modern and Sustainable NHS Providing Accessible and Personalised Care for All', it has propose six areas for reform where radical-but-practical policy action will begin to transform the future of the NHS and deliver better patient care. It has proposed to create new access routes for services and providers. It added: "The range and availability of health-care services must increase to reflect citizens' demands and their increasingly complex needs. "Pharmacies, gyms, supermarkets, workplaces and other spaces should all be able to provide or facilitate the provision of health care, bringing services closer to patients and reducing demands on general practice. It suggested: "We must move towards greater community-based care and the creation of a neighbourhood health service, with more routes for direct patient access, to ensure services are available when and where people need them. These should all be accessible through a single, simple digital front door to the NHS."

Our Totton branch has an incredibly high volume of original pack dispensing, roughly 45,000 items. As we became busier and busier in the dispensary we were finding that our pharmacists, dispensers and other technicians simply didn't have capacity to deliver the services that we needed them to. We all know there is a real emphasis right now on pharmacies doing more services and we knew we had to change the way we operate to survive. So we decided it was time to look into a sound automation solution for our medication dispensing process, one that would allow us to free up the time of the pharmacists and the rest of the team so they could better support patients. After a lot of research we invested in Centred Solutions FLOWRx Hub and InStore solutions which were installed late last year. It provides us with the whole package and has automated our entire dispensing process from picking to packing and labeling to checking. Our situation was quite unique as we bought the system initially for our existing high-volume pharmacy in Totton so the hub and the spoke are actually on the same site. People wouldn't usually look at a hub and spoke solution for that kind of set up but it has allowed us to significantly free up time in store for more services. What it has also done is allow us to look at other opportunities to grow and expand. The pharmacy landscape is changing and there are lots of opportunities coming up. We have found that having your technology and the right infrastructure in place to support your existing footprint before you expand is the ideal way to grow in a safe and controlled way. We never thought that five years ago we would buy another pharmacy, yet we have already bought one and are now in the process of buying two more. I'm not worried about the increase in volume this expansion will bring because I know our technology is going to be able to support it. The pharmacies we are buying are struggling but having our solution already in place m

In its response to NHS England's consultation on 'the future of vaccination services', the Pharmaceutical services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) has suggested that a wider range of NHS vaccinations being available from community pharmacies could support the achievement of increased vaccination levels. PSNC said: "Any additional services that contractors could provide can only be considered with additional remuneration above the current global sum in the community pharmacy contractual framework to ensure that the services are adequately resourced." Alastair Buxton, director of NHS services at PSNC, said: "We've always known, and the evidence supports this, that community pharmacies are one of the most popular and accessible places for people to receive a range of vaccinations. "The NHS was slow to take advantage of this at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, so we welcome this consultation from them to bring together a wide range of views on the topic. "In the longer-term, if the right funding and support is in place, many pharmacies could help deliver a much wider range of NHS vaccination programmes - giving the public the convenience and service that they want, and taking pressure off our general practice colleagues. It makes perfect sense, and we look forward to the NHS response to this consultation."

The National Health Service said that over 425,000 patients have utilised its new national online service to complete GP registration within its inaugural year. The GP surgery registration service, managed by NHS England, has granted NHS patients efficient and user-friendly access to GP registration since its inception in August 2022. According to the NHS, more than 1,400 GP surgeries, a fifth of the national count, have joined the NHS online registration service as part of a new plan to improve access to primary care. "This aligns with a new strategy to enhance primary care access, with a target of enrolling 2,000 practices in the Register with a GP surgery service by December 2023." Many GP surgeries still use paper forms, requiring patients to visit surgeries to collect paperwork. However, the new online service has been shown to save GP surgery staff up to 15 minutes per registration by helping to reduce paperwork and admin time, the NHS said. The NHS said that this service enables patients to register with a local GP online at any time, eliminating the need for in-person visits and simplifying the process for both patients and GP surgeries.

Pharmacy chain Superdrug has introduced what it asserts to be the most affordable private flu vaccinations offered on the UK high street. The vaccinations will be priced at £8.79 for 17.2 million members of its Ghada , and £16.99 for non-members. The 2023-24 vaccination service is set to become available across 150 of its stores starting from early September. Superdrug has taken this step in response to a change in NHS England's inclusion criteria, which has rendered the 12 million individuals aged 50-65 ineligible for the NHS flu vaccination service, the company said. The company is anticipating heightened demand for private flu vaccinations due to the postponed commencement of the NHS service and alterations in eligibility for free flu jabs. "Our waiting list for private flu vaccination services has already exceeded last year's figures, indicating a heightened demand this year," said Ghada Beal, Superdrug's Healthcare Director. "Providing this service at a more accessible price-point is significant, given the eligibility changes that will impact millions. Our private flu vaccination services provide a convenient means for individuals to safeguard themselves against flu and its potential complications." In May, the government's annual flu vaccination programme letter indicated that individuals aged 50 to 64 won't receive free flu vaccinations in the 2023/24 season. Moreover, the NHS plans to delay flu vaccine distribution to October, with the goal of enhancing protection for those aged 65 and older and other eligible groups during the winter months.

The Community Pharmacist Consultation Service (CPCS) will be expanded to enable urgent and emergency care settings to refer patients to a community pharmacist for a consultation for minor illness or urgent medicine supply from Monday (15 May), the DHSC and NHSE said. The service builds on the progress made in GP referrals via the CPCS and hospital referrals under the Discharge Medicine Service. It was originally planned to launch in March, and fee for this service will be the existing CPCS fee of £14, as per the agreement for both year 4 and year 5 of the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework (CPCF) 2019 to 2024 5-year deal. In an update on the CPCF, published today (12 May), the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and NHS England (NHSE) has also committed to the 4 October 2023 launch date for the Tier 2 of the Pharmacy Contraception Service, subject to a positive evaluation of the pilot. The Tier 1 of the service was launched on 24 April, delayed by over three months. This new service enables community pharmacists to provide ongoing management, via a patient group direction (PGD), of routine oral contraception that was initiated in general practice or by a sexual health clinic. The fees for this service are as follows: a fee for each consultation of £18; and a set-up fee of £900, paid in instalments. The Tier 2 will "enable community pharmacists to also initiate oral contraception, via a PGD, and provide ongoing clinical checks and annual reviews," Alette Addison, deputy director for pharmacy, dental and optical at the DHSC and Ali Sparke, director for dentistry, community pharmacy and optometry at the NHSE, said in a letter.

The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has raised its concerns over rising cost of rent for its members. The association highlighted that pharmacy spending is shrinking, and therefore, the NHS Property Services must ensure viability of health centre pharmacies. In May, the NPA wrote to NHS Property Services to voice its concerns over the rising cost of rent after some of its members reported demands for a three-fold increase in rent. Many pharmacies operate in premises of which NHS Property Services is the landlord. In a letter last month to chief executive Martin Steele, NPA said: "The past years have seen far fewer patients in health centres and therefore using the on-site pharmacy - whilst the situation will change somewhat as we move out of the pandemic we expect a permanent impact on workload as practices handle more of their interactions virtually. "The NPA encourages NHS Property Services to review lease agreements involving community pharmacies and consider favourable changes to terms that are in line with current financial realities affecting the sector. This could avoid the loss of a pharmacy service to communities and the resulting loss of rental income to NHS Property Services."

Net neutrality is one of the biggest issue debated globally by the telecom regulators and it is also in the process of finalising what will be a landmark recommendation for Indian telecom. The important aspects of Net neutrality are: Internet service providers should enable access to all content and applications regardless of the source. The Internet service provider from whom buy internet pack, should not under any circumstance be able to control how exactly use it and it's upto how you use the data. All websites can co-exist without hampering others and all websites are accessible at the same speed and no particular website of application is favoured. All web sites and content creators are treated equal, and it don't have to pay extra for faster Internet speed to a particular site/service. The concept of net neutrality doesn't exist legally but most companies have Net Neutrality is simply the Internet Freedom - Free, Fast and Open Internet for all. Net Neutrality is the principle that Internet service providers (ISPs) should give consumers access to all and every contents and application on an equal basis, treating all Internet traffic equally. Today, if there's something that makes everyone across the world "Equal" is nothing but the Internet. Equality over the Internet means, the richest man in the world has the same rights to access the Internet as the poorer. And this is what "Net Neutrality" aims at adhered to it until now. With the Internet taking the world into its folds, Internet Service Providers across the world are trying to encash this potent commodity and trying to control the traffic. Karma Healthcare KP-80 Standing Wheelchair is a compact and fully powered wheelchair designed for budget. The front-wheel drive provides agile control for the chair to negotiate various indoors and out. It comes with the innovative seat and wide range of power backrest angle adjustment (80~120 degree).

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) is refreshing its Professional Standards for Homecare Services and will be shared for consultation in August to allow comment and input on the updated content. The final version is expected to be completed in the autumn. The standards were originally published in 2013 and are a framework to support teams providing and commissioning homecare Services. Homecare medicines Services deliver medication, and any necessary associated care, direct to the patient's home with their consent. The standards help patients experience a consistent quality of homecare Services, irrespective of provider, will protect them from avoidable incidents and help them get the best outcomes from their medicines. Jennifer Allen, The Chief Pharmaceutical Officer's Clinical Fellow leading the refresh at RPS said: "It has been 10 years since the first set of Homecare Standards were published, so it is important that they are reviewed and brought up to date to reflect current service design, medicine pathways and delivery models to ensure patients receive safe and effective medication supply and associated care."

David Webb, the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for England, acknowledged that the "pressure in the system is high", but urged everyone to "keep our eye on the design" of the NHS plan, adding that the "the objective is to bring the different parts of primary care together" in the patient interest. Speaking during the opening keynote session at the the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) conference held on Thursday (13 October), he added that the NHS plan intends to bring different parts of primary care together to help patients. He said the new integrated care boards (ICBs) are a key strategic framework as they provide the "potential to form partnerships to deliver integrated services across larger populations". "ICBs will want to work with Local Pharmaceutical Committees to plan for the local population and the new community pharmacy clinical leads in ICBs, who have been funded by NHS England, are there to advise." He explained that once an ICB takes over the commissioning of pharmaceutical services (which they are all due to do by April 2023), it could use its funds to commission a local enhanced service as an add on to an advanced service. For instance, a CVD risk assessment could be added to the blood pressure check service.

The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) has raised concerns over the rising risks related to online pharmacy services. It revealed over 30 per cent of its open Fitness to Practise (FtP) cases were related to online pharmacy, which is disproportionate to the sector of the market that online services occupy. The regulator has advised pharmacists and pharmacy owners providing online services that they should "not work with online providers who try to circumvent the regulatory oversight put in place within the UK to ensure patient safety". In the past five months, the Council has imposed seven interim orders on the registration of pharmacists who have worked for or with online prescribing services - after identifying serious concerns with their practice. It said: "These pharmacists were working as pharmacist independent prescribers for online services or were dispensing medicines prescribed online. Some of these pharmacists were the Responsible Pharmacist (RP) or the Superintendent Pharmacist (SP)."

Community Pharmacy England (CPE) has released a series of resources to help pharmacy owners and their teams promote the new Pharmacy First service, which is slated for launch on 31st January 2024. Pharmacists can use a variety of resources, including posters, social media content, flyers and a local press release, to raise awareness of the new service to patients and members of the public. The promotional materials are now available to download from the Committee's website. "The messaging and graphics have been developed with the input of pharmacists and pharmacy owners, to highlight the benefits of the service to patients, the public, and the NHS," it said. CPE has been providing a range of information, guidance and resources to support community pharmacies in the implementation of the new service. Beginning Monday 29 January 2024, the committee will be hosting a series of online drop-in sessions (no need to register) to assist pharmacy professionals with any queries they may have on the service.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has launched a new position paper on 'How pharmacy can do more to tackle health inequalities'. The RPS paper aims to help pharmacists and pharmacy teams to take action against health inequalities. It is designed to provide a reference source for pharmacy teams to use over time to continually improve services. RPS said: "Like all health services, these pharmacy services do not always reach everyone. Often it is people who are suffering the greatest inequalities that find it most difficult to access the services that are currently available. This can be for a large number of reasons including poverty, education, being part of a group vulnerable to exclusion, language and power." Therefore, the RPS paper focuses not on "what" services pharmacy provides but "how" they are provided, with an aim of making them more accessible for people who are currently struggling. Claire Anderson, President of Royal Pharmaceutical Society said: "It's fantastic that pharmacy teams in every sector of pharmacy across Great Britain are providing care that can improve health inequalities, with many patients able to access pharmacy services very easily. Brilliant examples of this shine through in the paper.

The Community Pharmacist Consultation Service (CPCS) has been running as a national advanced service since October 2019 to relieve pressure on the National Health Service which aims to help with on the day demand in relation to minor illness and medicines. The NHS Community Pharmacist Consultation Service CPCS (NHS CPCS) aims to meet the objectives of the NHS Long Term Plan to use community pharmacists' skills to advise patients, and to build relationships with GP surgeries, primary care teams and wider NHS providers and to assist with urgent care system repeat prescription requests. Referrals from the GP referral pathway and urgent care systems and urgent treatment centres are digitally routed to community pharmacies so that patients can receive same-day appointments and have their queries resolved. The numbers Based on the estimated annual number of minor ailment GP appointments, the service was expected to save the NHS up to £640 million per year . Three years later, the nation has weathered the Covid 19 pandemic, which had widespread effects and put further strain on already overstretched NHS staff. The pandemic impact has resulted in higher numbers of GP appointments than initially anticipated. Nevertheless, this may offer an opportunity to proactively engage pharmacy teams in patient contact help ease strain across the wider NHS.