Good news for patients whose epilepsy cannot be controlled by standard anti-seizure drugs! Next month, NHS England will introduce a cutting-edge laser beam
therapy that can prevent seizures in these individuals.
Known as Laser Interstitial Thermal Therapy (LITT), the advanced treatment targets the part of the brain causing seizures without the need for invasive surgery,
the health service said.
The new fibre optic laser therapy is being offered at King's College Hospital in London and The Walton Centre in Liverpool. Starting from June, it will be gradually
extended to eligible patients across England.
Each year, it is expected to benefit up to 50 epilepsy patients in England who are resistant to standard anti-seizure medications.
"This groundbreaking new treatment will change the lives of those with severe epilepsy improving quality of life and providing much-needed assurance," said Andrew
Stephenson, Minister of State for Health.
After receiving approval from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), the NHS is preparing to roll out a new combination treatment
for brain tumours in children and young people in England.
Dabrafenib with trametinib would be the first ever targeted treatment for children (aged 1-17) with gliomas that have a specific genetic mutation, the health
service said.
The treatment, which can be taken at home, has been found to slow the progression of the disease by over threefold compared to standard chemotherapy in children
with low-grade gliomas that have a BRAF V600E mutation. Clinical trials have shown that it causes fewer side-effects than chemotherapy.
NICE approved the combination treatment on Wednesday 24 April. It will be available on the NHS in the coming months.
The National Health Service (NHS) is embracing new technology and innovations like artificial intelligence (AI) to reduce the number of missed hospital
appointments and improve waiting times for elective care.
Following a successful pilot in Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust, the health service is set to roll out AI software to 10 more trusts across England in
the coming months.
The software, developed by Deep Medical in collaboration with a frontline worker and NHS clinical fellow, helps reduce the number of missed appointments by
offering patients convenient time slots and backup booking options.
Since the AI programme was piloted six months ago, Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust has seen a 30 per cent fall in non-attendances.
During the pilot period, a total of 377 did not attends (DNAs) were prevented and an additional 1,910 patients were attended.
Many people with advanced Parkinson's disease are currently required to take more than 20 pills a day to manage their symptoms, while some necessitate
treatment through a permanent feeding tube.
Soon, patients will only be required to wear a portable kit to get a continuous dose of the medication delivered into their bloodstream 24 hours a day.
This innovative treatment, called Produodopa, will now be made available on the NHS, providing benefit to nearly 1,000 people with advanced Parkinson's disease,
according to a BBC report.
James Palmer, NHS England's medical director for specialised services, told the publication that the drug's rollout will offer "a vital new option on the NHS for
those who aren't suitable for other treatments such as deep brain stimulation."
He added that the new therapy will help patients manage their symptoms "more effectively" and improve their quality of life.
Local pharmacists in England can now evaluate and provide treatment for patients with uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTIs) in women under the age
of 65, without the need for a GP appointment.
The 'ByeByeUTI' scheme has been expanded across the country, following a successful pilot across North East and North Cumbria.
More than 30,000 women have been treated for uncomplicated urinary tract infections at local pharmacies since the pilot scheme was launched in July 2022 as part
of the NHS and government's primary care access recovery plan, according to NHS England.
The expansion of pharmacy services not only enhances patients' access to care but also frees up tens of thousands of GP appointments at the same time.
Dr Faisel Baig, Medical Director for Primary Care, NHS England North East and Yorkshire, said that the rollout of this service across the whole region will enable
many more women to receive "faster and easier" access to advice and treatment.
The Digital Medicines Transformation Portfolio (DMTP) was able to deliver the electronic prescription service (EPS) in Wales - just 20 months after
starting the project - with support from key partners in the NHS and industry.
Patients in Rhyl were the first to benefit from the new service, which allows GPs to send prescriptions electronically to the patient's choice of community
pharmacy, without the need for a paper form.
The new EPS service is currently in a live testing phase, with a phased roll out across Wales expected from January 2024.
DMTP, which is hosted by Digital Health and Care Wales (DHCW) has worked closely with NHS England, who provided the core EPS platform that has been developed
for use in Wales. NHS Wales Shared Services Partnership has also made a major contribution in the project, incorporating digital reimbursement to pharmacies
and putting security measures in place.
NHS England is rolling out a range of tech and data solutions, including an artificial intelligence (AI) system, across the health service to tackle winter
pressures.
The AI system will be used to identify patients at risk of hospital admission so community NHS teams can get to them first and reduce pressures on A&E departments.
On a trial basis, four GP practices in Somerset have started using the innovative technology which can highlight registered patients with complex health needs.
Health coaches, nurses, or GPs will then reach out to the people most at risk, and provide them with a range of preventive care such as monitoring, food parcels,
cleaning, shopping, as well as escalating care to specialist doctors.
Leading pharmacy group Weldricks has strengthened its commitment to providing the highest quality of care to the communities it serves by implementing the
RPS Daffodil Quality Improvement Standards for Community Pharmacy.
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) on Monday (20 November) announced that Weldricks will soon be rolling out the Daffodil Standards across half its stores in
South Yorkshire.
Developed in partnership with UK charity Marie Curie, the RPS Daffodil Standards serve as a framework for improving the quality of palliative and end-of-life care
provided by community pharmacy teams.
Amy Marlin, Superintendent Pharmacist of Weldricks, commented that the implementation of the RPS Daffodil Standards is "another step forward in our journey to
provide the highest quality of care to the communities we serve."
Wales launched the new electronic prescribing service (EPS) last week, with the country's first electronic prescription sent and dispensed on 17 November.
The new service allows prescriptions to be sent digitally to a patient's nominated pharmacy, thus eliminating the need for paper forms.
It is part of a wider plan to introduce digital medicines and e-prescribing in all hospitals and primary care in the country.
Wellington Road Pharmacy and Lakeside Medical Centre in Rhyl became the first community pharmacy and GP practice to use the EPS, which is expected to be
rolled out across Wales in January 2024.
The National Health Service (NHS) has said that the roll-out of blood-thinning drugs has helped save thousands of lives.
In January 2022, the NHS launched a drive to rapidly expand the use of life-saving direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) in people who are at increased risk of strokes.
Since then, more than 24 million prescriptions have been given to such patients and around 460,000 more people have started taking the drugs.
This prevented an estimated 17,000 strokes and 4,000 deaths in the last 18 months, as revealed by the new NHS data.
Amanda Pritchard, the NHS chief executive, hailed the "lifesaving NHS rollout" at the King's Fund annual conference.
It is part of a major NHS drive on "prevention" - to catch more killer conditions earlier and save more lives.
Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has updated the final price concessions for June 2023, following a discussion by Community Pharmacy England
regarding medicine pricing issues reported by pharmacy owners (its members).
A price concession only applies for the month it is granted; any prices agreed for concessions requested late in the month will roll over into the following month.
Community Pharmacy England encouraged pharmacies to report any problems obtaining a Part VIII product at or below the stated Drug Tariff price, using the online
feedback form on the Community Pharmacy England website along with full details of the supplier and price paid for any products sourced above the Drug Tariff price.
The association will investigate the extent of the problem and, if appropriate, discuss the issue with DHSC.
Bristol-based Titan PMR, a technology firm specialising in PMR systems for community pharmacies, is set to roll out an innovative platform named 'Titanverse,'
that it claims will redefine pharmacy management, offering comprehensive solutions extending beyond prescription management.
This new platform takes a versatile approach, efficiently managing all facets of pharmacy operations, from high-level management down to daily tasks, according to
top company officials.
"Our aim is to reshape pharmacies into genuine health hubs, providing advanced services and harnessing state-of-the-art technologies," said Tariq Muhammad, CEO of
Titan PMR. "Titanverse, our latest offering, is positioned to ignite this transformation, revolutionising clinical services in the same way its predecessor
revolutionised dispensing. With Titanverse, we have the vehicle to drive this vision forward, placing pharmacies at the forefront of primary care in the future."
Titanverse adopts a Teams approach, catering to pharmacies with multiple locations or specific focuses. It furnishes real-time analytics and employs a color-coded
rating system for swift performance evaluation.
Moreover, the platform eases operations by enabling task delegation, encompassing clinical checks and dispensing, all while backing private services with adaptable
templates and workflows.
The Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay has proposed a new £30 million fund to speed up the adoption of innovative medical technology in the NHS.
He confirmed the plan today at the Conservative Party Conference 2023 in Manchester.
Mr Barclay said that virtual wards will help healthcare professionals embrace new technology to improve patient care.
He said: "It is vital that clinicians have access to the latest technology to save staff time, deliver high-quality care and help cut waiting lists - one of the
government's top five priorities.
"This investment will see the latest tech innovations rolled out across the NHS. From virtual ward beds to wearable medical devices, patients will be better
supported, and we will ease pressures on hospitals this winter.
"We're preparing for this winter earlier than ever before including delivering thousands more hospital beds and hundreds of new ambulances."
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The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) has emphasised that the community pharmacy sector must be involved right from the start in all local planning meetings
pertaining to the roll-out of vaccine services in potential future pandemics. This includes crucial discussions regarding supply logistics and resource allocation,
lawyers representing the NPA told COVID-19 public inquiry hearing.
Chaired by Baroness Heather Hallett, the independent public inquiry is examining the UK's response to the Covid-19 pandemic and lessons for the future.
The NPA has been designated as a 'core participant' in Module 4 (vaccines) of the inquiry, which considers various issues related to vaccine development and rollout,
as well as Module 3 (healthcare).
During the hearing on September 13, NPA lawyers outlined three key areas the association says must be improved in future pandemic vaccination programs, including
properly utilising existing primary care expertise, better planning and engagement, and improved access to information for community pharmacists.
The Scottish Government and Community Pharmacy Scotland have agreed to roll out next month a new national service to provide emergency access to supplies
of naloxone.
An NHS circular signed by Alison Strath, Chief Pharmaceutical Officer of Scotland, advises that the emergency supply service will be added to the community
pharmacy Public Health Service from 30 October 2023. It states that community pharmacy contractors and pharmacy teams should ensure they are familiar with the
new arrangements.
Community pharmacy contractors have been asked to ensure that pharmacy teams complete the e-learning module for naloxone emergency supply. They are also encouraged
to join webinars to support the implementation of the service which will be held on Wednesday 4 October and Tuesday 14 November at 19:30. Details of how to register
can be found at on NHS Scotland's Turas platform.
Pharmacy owners can proceed with vaccinating patients who have already scheduled their flu vaccination appointments for September, NHS England has said.
However, as announced earlier, the official rollout of the vaccination service will commence from October.
Pharmacies will receive compensation for conducting appointments in the upcoming month, NHSE stated in a letter addressed to systems, community pharmacies, and
general practices.
"Payment for vaccinations will ordinarily only be made following the service commencement date. However, we understand that some firm commitments and appointments
have already been made, so where this is the case and the patient wishes to receive flu vaccination in September, NHS England will permit payment claims to be
submitted," NHSE said.
Care home residents and staff will be eligible for the vaccine starting Oct. 2, while all other patients will commence receiving their vaccinations on Oct 7.
This news is a significant relief for pharmacy owners, as they won't have to reschedule appointments due to NHSE's one-month service delay.
The NHS has launched plans to expand pioneering subscription-style drug contracts to develop lifesaving antibiotics of the future.
It is building on its world-first pilot to incentivise the pharmaceutical industry to develop new antibiotics that could be offered to NHS patients when they
need them the most.
The consultation has launched almost a year to the day that contracts for two superbug-busting drugs were rolled out as part of a world-first pilot.
Cefiderocol and ceftazidime-avibactam, new antibiotics manufactured by Shionogi and Pfizer respectively, were awarded world-first subscription contracts which
provided the companies with a fixed annual fee based primarily on the availability of the drugs and their value to the NHS, as opposed to the volumes used.
By breaking the link between the payments companies receive and the number of their antibiotics prescribed, the NHS is removing any incentive to overuse antibiotics,
decreasing the risk of life-threatening infections, such as sepsis and pneumonia, becoming resistant to treatment.
Glenmark, a multinational pharmaceutical company, has partnered with AI data-driven supply chain management platform 7bridges.
Initially focusing on their European business, where they have operations in 15 markets, the supply chain and logistics function is a big focus area for this cost
reduction.
The partnership with 7bridges will allow Glenmark to baseline their supply chain data giving them visibility of data, cost and service performance across their
network of logistics service providers.
This exercise will identify areas where invoices from their logistics service providers are being incorrectly or overcharged. With automatic dispute raising,
savings will be quickly achieved. The platform will then enable Glenmark to benchmark their data, so they can compare the performance and cost of their LSPs to the
wider industry.
With Glenmark's global vision to emerge as a leading integrated research-based global pharmaceutical company, this investment in their supply chain will be integral
to achieving this.
The next step in the partnership will be to run simulations to optimise road freight services and 3PL operations, with the aim to then roll out globally.
