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A new report has highlighted that while NHS trusts are well placed to drive the new Labour government's desired healthcare transformation, additional resources are essential to fully realise this vision. Published by NHS Providers, the report explored how trusts are innovating and adapting to deliver the three key shifts outlined by the government: from hospital to community-based cafe, from analogue to digital, and from treatment to prevention. Titled "Providers Deliver: shifting care upstream," the report cited some successful approaches trusts have taken to ensure patients can get the care they need in the right place at the right time. Examples include: Tackling the wider determinants of health to improve patient flow - Hampshire and Isle of Wight Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust Reducing demand for emergency care by providing support at home - East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust Improving mental health crisis care from the ground up - North Staffordshire Combined Healthcare NHS Trust Harnessing a culture of continuous improvement to deliver care in the right place - Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust Taking the next step from hospital at home to early intervention - Hertfordshire Community NHS Trust

As Health Secretary Wes Streeting initiates a national conversation about the future of the NHS, the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) has stressed the importance of increasing investment in medicines to fix the 'broken' NHS. Streeting is inviting the public, NHS staff, and experts to share their experiences and contribute to shaping the government's 10 Year Health Plan to build an NHS fit for the future. The government aims to implement three big shifts to transform the NHS: hospital to community, analogue to digital, and sickness to prevention. Richard Torbett, chief executive of the ABPI, has highlighted the vital role medicines and vaccines can play in achieving these priorities. He said: "Wes Streeting is spot-on in identifying three strategic shifts necessary to fix the broken NHS. Medicines and vaccines have a vital role in all three of these priorities, but we are not currently realising their potential."

The Labour government has launched the biggest national conversation about the future of the NHS since its birth, calling on the entire country to share their experiences of the health service. The feedback will be used to shape the government's 10 Year Health Plan to fix the "broken" health service and deliver its mission to build an NHS fit for the future. Members of the public, as well as NHS staff and experts, are invited to share their experiences, views and ideas for the future of NHS via a new online platform that goes live today. The Change NHS online platform, which will be live until the start of next year, is also available via the NHS App. The public engagement exercise will focus on three shifts in healthcare - hospital to community, analogue to digital, and sickness to prevention.

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.

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.

The new 'How to Involve and Engage Patients on Digital Health Tech Innovation' learning module has been created specifically to support the development and delivery of patient-centric technologies, at a time of critical digital transformation in the NHS. The foundation level module will be freely available at www.orcha-digitalhealthacademy.com and on the Health Education England NHS Learning Hub (learninghub.nhs.uk). No training previously exists on conducting effective patient and public involvement and engagement (PPIE), leading to wasted resource on unsuitable technologies at a time when the healthcare system simply cannot afford it. The module aims to educate innovators who are creating new technology, and the clinicians who are prescribing these solutions. Crucially, the module also provides valuable support to the 500 NHS clinicians who are on the Clinical Entrepreneur Programme. The module is an introduction to the first evidence-based framework for PPIE, launched by the University of Plymouth, the AHSN Network (the national voice of the 15 academic health science networks in England) and Boehringer Ingelheim UK & Ireland. It helps to fast-track learning for the EnACT principles described in the framework, outlining how to involve patients in product innovation and critical issues such as data privacy, intellectual property, inclusivity, reimbursement, useability, and recruitment of patients.

In a remarkable turn of events, the NHS App has emerged as a financial saviour for the National Health Service, slashing costs by over £1 million in the last year alone. The revelation comes as a testament to the app's growing significance in streamlining patient communication and service delivery. Throughout the fiscal year 2023/24, a staggering 22.5 million messages traversed the NHS App, a feat previously reliant on traditional methods like text messages or letters. This monumental shift not only signifies a boon for efficiency but also heralds substantial savings, with each text message costing an average of 5p. Drastically reducing these expenses has amounted to a commendable £1.1 million in savings, marking a pivotal milestone in NHS expenditure management.

In a groundbreaking move towards modernising healthcare, England's National Health Service (NHS) has successfully implemented digital prescriptions, as reported by the World Health Organization (WHO) in its latest regional digital health report. Since January 2024, patients across England have had access to their prescription information through the NHS App, marking a significant leap in healthcare accessibility and efficiency. With over 33 million registered users, representing 75 per cent of the adult population, the NHS App has become a vital tool in managing healthcare online. The introduction of digital prescriptions allows users to order repeat prescriptions online without the need for a GP visit. This innovation has witnessed a surge in digital requests, with over 3.1 million repeat prescriptions processed monthly.

NHS England has launched a cloud-based platform that links recently-retired consultants, who still hold a licence to practice, with secondary care providers who need additional help with their waiting lists. It has been developed to make it easier and more flexible for retired doctors to return to the health service as part of the Long Term Workforce Plan. NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard in June 2023 announced the NHS Emeritus pilot scheme, which is expected to help reduce long waits for elective care. Initially, the scheme will run for a year across England, and if successful, it may be expanded to cover other work areas. Health Minister Andrew Stephenson commented: "Returning consultants will bring invaluable experience and knowledge, and the new digital platform will match highly-skilled consultants with the NHS trusts that require their expertise, providing high quality care and alleviating pressures on high demand areas.

The government has decided to refresh the NHS workforce plan, prioritising on shifting care from hospitals and into the community. The revised plan, expected to be unveiled in the summer 2025, aims to ensure the workforce is used effectively to support the delivery of the upcoming 10-Year Health Plan. Health secretary Wes Streeting explained the need to revise the plan citing Lord Darzi's report, which highlighted the dire state of the NHS, including that "too many people end up in hospital because there aren't the resources in the community to reach patients earlier." "Our 10 Year Health Plan will deliver 3 big shifts in the focus of healthcare: from hospital to community, analogue to digital, and sickness to prevention. "We will refresh the NHS workforce plan to fit the transformed health service we will build over the next decade, so the NHS has the staff it needs to treat patients on time again," Streeting said.

To lead the way in modernizing the UK's healthcare, the National Health Service (NHS) digitized the prescriptions. WHO mentioned this in their current digital regional report. Since January 2024, the NHS App in England has offered patients the opportunity to see statistics about their prescriptions. This represents a gigantic step in the area of healthcare which can be categorized as another stage in healthcare accessibility and efficiency. Over 33 million residents have taken the NHS app enabling the users to be 75% of the adult population. The app helps in online management of their health. The use of digital prescriptions enables patients to order repeated prescriptions online, in which they would past getting an appointment a GP.

Community pharmacy teams are urged to share their views relating to the new NHS Booking and Referral Standard (BaRS). "This will ensure that the tool supports the needs of pharmacy team members and their patients," said the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC). BaRS is an interoperability standard for healthcare IT systems which should enable booking and referral information to be sent to or from care providers, such as community pharmacies, quickly, safely and in a format useful to clinicians. "The intentions are that the BaRS IT standard will eventually be available in all care settings. The way the standard could be used in pharmacies is currently being considered, including the potential for use for referrals from NHS 111 to community pharmacy." The BaRS team are conducting interviews (usually lasting 30-45 minutes) to hear more the current experiences and the future preferences regarding sending and receiving referral messages.

"We're thrilled that MedicinesComplete will now be available to all clinicians in Wales through the NHS Wales e-Library," said Karen Baxter, Managing Director of Pharmaceutical Press, announcing a contract with NHS Wales. The collaboration between Pharmaceutical Press, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's knowledge business, and NHS Wales is set to grant healthcare professionals across Wales unlimited access to MedicinesComplete. MedicineComeplete is a vital resource for accurate and trusted medicines information, includes key resources such as the British National Formulary, Stockley's Drug Interactions, and Martindale: The Complete Drug Reference and will be accessible through the NHS Wales e-Library, managed by Digital Health and Care Wales. The collaboration effective starting September 1, 2024, aims to significantly enhance patient safety and improve healthcare outcomes by providing time-pressured clinicians with instant access to essential, evidence-based guidance. According to Baxter the new collaboration "will better enable health professionals across primary and secondary care to make confident decisions about medicines, ensuring patients get the best from their treatment." Moreover, MedicinesComplete has made it easy for health professionals globally to access trusted medicines information since 2004, provided expert guidance on the safe use and administration of drugs and medicines, in one place.

NHS England will collaborate with "a number of system suppliers" to increase the number of trusts using electronic prescription service (EPS) over the next few years. Nishali Patel, clinical lead for digital medicines at NHS England, announced it during the Clinical Pharmacy Congress, held at the Excel, London, on Friday, 10 May 2024. According to Nishali, at least half of all NHS secondary care trusts could be using EPS by 2026. This digital service allows prescribers to send prescriptions electronically to a patient-nominated pharmacy. It is widely used in primary care, where over 95 per cent of prescriptions are now electronically generated. NHS recently extended the service to secondary care settings.

Thanks to a new service added to the NHS App, patients in England can now see their prescriptions online and collect their prescribed medication from the nominated pharmacy or a pharmacy of their choice without a paper prescription. NHS England has introduced digital prescriptions in the app following a successful trial last year involving over a million users. Users without a nominated pharmacy can collect their prescriptions from any pharmacy using the barcode in the app, but this is not required for patients with a nominated pharmacy as details would be sent to their pharmacy electronically. From now on, patients waiting for elective hospital treatment can also check the average waiting time for their procedure at their local trust using the NHS App.

Wes Streeting's speech at the Labour Party Conference 2024 outlines several key health and social care reforms, which hold significant implications for community pharmacy in England. His focus on reforming and rebuilding the NHS to ensure fair, universal access to care, with prevention and early intervention at its core, presents both opportunities and challenges for community pharmacy. Here are the potential implications: 1. Prevention Focus Streeting's vision of a shift from a reactive, hospital-based model to a preventive healthcare system presents a promising future for community pharmacies. These changes could significantly reduce pressures on GPs and hospitals, integrating pharmacies more closely into primary care networks and enhancing their role in preventive care. 2. Digital Transformation The move from an "analogue to digital" NHS could see community pharmacies adopting more digital tools and systems for service delivery. This would likely involve greater use of digital prescribing, telehealth consultations, and AI-driven services. Pharmacies will need to invest in digital infrastructure and ensure that pharmacy professionals are trained to operate within a more tech-centric environment. 3. Reform and Redistribution of Services Streeting's plans to extend choice and equitable access to services mean that community pharmacies could become integral to providing care in underserved or disadvantaged areas. With a focus on decentralising healthcare and bringing it closer to local communities, community pharmacies could play a more significant role in supporting healthcare delivery in areas where GP services are stretched. This may include expanding access to pharmacy services in the most deprived areas, aligning with Labour's emphasis on addressing health inequalities.

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."

NHS England has commissioned the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) to develop guidance that helps community and hospital pharmacy teams across Britain to reduce the impact of pharmacy services, pharmaceutical care and medicines on the environment. The RPS said the Greener Pharmacy Guidance will enable pharmacies to self-assess their impact against the standards, benchmark and improve through evidence-based activities and actions. "I'm delighted our strong commitment to helping pharmacy reduce its environmental impact can now be taken to the next level through developing guidance and accreditation for pharmacy teams," RPS president Professor Claire Anderson said. "Medicines account for 25 per cent of carbon emissions within the NHS and this initiative underscores our commitment to promoting sustainable healthcare and supporting the NHS's goal of achieving 'net zero' emissions by 2040." Peter Morgan, medicines assistant director at NHS England, commented: "Pharmacy staff are involved in the purchasing and dispensing of almost every medicine used in the NHS and the new Greener Pharmacy Guidance and Self-accreditation scheme will provide support for pharmacy professionals by outlining clear actions to deliver more environmentally sustainable pharmacy practices." The RPS said the guidance and digital self-assessment toolkit will integrate with carbon calculator tools to help pharmacy teams to measure their carbon footprint, action plan to reduce use of carbon and improve sustainability.

In its latest style guide for digital health writing, the NHS advises bloggers and writers to avoid using the word 'chemist' when referring to a 'pharmacy' as users are more likely to look for the latter. Likewise, the content guide titled 'A to Z of NHS health writing' encourages writers to use 'ethnic minorities' rather than the more commonly used abbreviated forms such as 'BAME' or 'BME'. "Use a capital letter when you're writing about ethnicity or when you're asking users for their ethnic group," it advises, and therefore recommends writing 'Black, Asian, African, Black British or Caribbean' or 'people from a White British background'. In a further chapter on 'Ethnicity, Religion and Nationality,' it notes that a writer should "only refer to people's ethnic heritage or religion if it's relevant to the content." Likewise, when talking about skin colour, the style guide asks to use terms that are easy to understand including brown and black skin. "We do not refer to brown or black skin as 'dark' or 'darker'." It advises not to describe people as mentally ill but use phrases such as 'mental health condition' or 'mental health problems'.

Part of a raft of National Health Services (NHS) measures which aim to support people to prevent or reduce incidence of type 2 diabetes and obesity, the NHS Digital Weight Management Programme has emerged as a beacon of success in the battle against obesity, with a recent study showcasing its effectiveness in aiding weight loss among participants. According to research published in The Obesity Journal, the programme has garnered significant traction, with over 63,000 individuals referred in its inaugural year. Encouragingly, half of those referred opted to enroll in the service, highlighting its appeal and accessibility. Among the 14,000 participants who completed the 12-week programme between April 2021 and March 2022, a notable average weight loss of 3.9kg (equivalent to 8.59lbs) was achieved. Even among those who did not complete the programme, an average weight loss of 2.2kg (approximately 4.85lbs) was observed.