Group items tagged

The full version of the Community Pharmacy Assurance Framework (CPAF) questionnaire is now available for selected pharmacies to complete. This follows a screening questionnaire in July, which all community pharmacies in England were asked to complete as part of the CPAF process. Pharmacies may be selected for the full, comprehensive CPAF questionnaire if, for example, they did not complete a screening questionnaire or if there are concerns about the pharmacy relating to patient safety. Some pharmacies may also be selected to validate their screening questionnaire answers. The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) said selected pharmacies have been contacted. It's mandatory to complete the survey which can be used as a training tool and for continuous monitoring of compliance against the community pharmacy contract.

Pharmacy bodies are "bitterly disappointed" that the latest deal on the national contract makes no commitment to "fresh funding", with one organisation calling it "the biggest dis-service ever done" to community pharmacy. The only commitment made in monetary terms was one in which NHS England agreed to write off a sum of £100m in excess margin earned by contractors in previous years. This allowance, which can't be seen as new cash injection, was said to have been made in recognition of the pressures facing the sector. The figure - reached after what the the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee called "a tense period of negotiations" with the Department of Health and Social Care and NHS England - will cover the final two years of the current five-year Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework. The deal was announced by PSNC chief executive Janet Morrison at an annual LPC Conference in Manchester on Thursday (22 September). Welcoming the attendees, she assured everyone that the committee was well aware of the pressures the sector was facing. "I heard how contractors are feeling and their frustrations over growing pressure and lack of financial support from the government. They confirmed that many now are unable to deliver the full range of services, and others are struggling to maintain core levels of services. And the ongoing impact of capacity and workforce crisis is critical, leading to temporary closures.

Pharmacy owners using NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) Manage Your Service (MYS) portal are urged to complete the 2023/24 Community Pharmacy Assurance Framework (CPAF) screening questionnaire which is available until midnight on Sunday (30 July). The short screening questionnaire consists of 10 questions. Those who are not yet signed up to MYS will be able to complete the questionnaire online. The questions will be published on the NHSBSA website shortly. Once the screening questionnaires have been completed, NHS England will then select a small number of pharmacies for a monitoring visit and/or to complete the full CPAF questionnaire. Community Pharmacy England has published a short Briefing on the screening process. As the questions have not changed since 2022/23 the previous briefing is still relevant.

The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) has been reminding contractors to complete the 2022/23 Community Pharmacy Assurance Framework (CPAF) screening questionnaire by midnight on Wednesday, 31 August 2022. As a result of NHS regulations introduced at the end of 2020, completion of CPAF is now a requirement of the Terms of Service. "Therefore, contractors must complete the screening questionnaire and, if required, the full CPAF questionnaire," said PSNC. It has also recommended that any contractor who has yet to do so takes immediate action. "It should only take approximately 10-20 minutes to complete." Information and instructions on how to complete the screening questionnaire has been shared either via an email from the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) or from their own Head Office. Contractors are advised to contact NHSBSA by emailing nhsbsa.cpaf@nhs.net if they have not received details of the questionnaire, or if they have any problems or queries completing the questionnaire.