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The new NHS chief executive Amanda Pritchard acknowledged and thanked health service staff and volunteers for their "extraordinary team effort" while the country fights Omicron. Pritchard, who took up the post in July, praised the efforts of doctors, nurses, therapists, porters and other staff who have worked hard to recover services impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. In her first Christmas message as the NHS chief, she praised all those involved in the NHS Covid vaccination programme which delivered more than 7 million jabs, including boosters, in the last 10 days alone. She said: "We've had another extraordinary 12 months. "From January when hospitals admitted 100,000 patients with Covid in a single month, while also delivering the world-class NHS covid vaccination programme; to receiving the George Cross during the summer, marked by a service at St Paul's, pulling out all the stops to make progress on recovering backlogs of care; and now facing the uncertainty of Omicron and winter pressures.

The Green Party has previewed its upcoming manifesto with a bold proposal for the National Health Service (NHS) and social care system, promising an unprecedented level of investment to restore and enhance these critical services. By 2030, the Greens aim to inject over £50 billion annually into health and social care, accompanied by an additional £20 billion capital investment to modernise healthcare infrastructure. Green Party Co-Leader Adrian Ramsay emphasised the urgency of these reforms, stating, "Our NHS is at breaking point following 14 years of underfunding." "Patients are stuck in hospital corridors, people can't see their GP or NHS dentist when they need to, and staff are severely overstretched." The manifesto highlights a comprehensive approach to revitalising the NHS, including:

Keith Ridge, who retired from the role of England's chief pharmaceutical officer this month, has written to the NHS regional directors regarding a package to empower community pharmacies to implement clinical services in their integrated care systems. Though details about this letter are not available, Malcolm Harrison, chief executive officer of the Company Chemists' Association, welcomed the move saying: "It is a positive step towards the greater integration of community pharmacy care into the NHS. "It is vital for the NHS that patients can benefit from the clinical care services set out in the Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework." Harrison, however, highlighted that while pharmacies are being pushed to do more, the efforts to introduce new clinical services should be supported with "sustainable funding and material actions to increase workforce numbers in the sector." "We are concerned that without the funding and people in place, the desired volume of necessary services cannot be delivered, no matter how well coordinated."

In a significant move aimed at improving patient care and alleviating hospital pressures, the National Health Services (NHS) has expanded its same day emergency care services across the UK. This has resulted in thousands more individuals receiving rapid tests and treatment, effectively avoiding overnight hospital stays. Recent data paints a promising picture, revealing an 11 per cent increase in the number of patients discharged on the same day they were admitted as emergencies. This advancement translates to several patients receiving urgent care within hours, subsequently freeing up beds for others in need. Over the past year alone, an impressive 206,446 more patients have been discharged on the same day, amounting to 2,024,129 individuals in the year leading up to January 2024, compared to 1,817,683 in the preceding year. The successful rollout of same day emergency care to every hospital in England has played a pivotal role in easing bed congestion and reducing hospital admissions by up to 30 per cent in certain NHS Trusts.

Expressing its concerns over the Government's decision to make Covid-19 vaccines mandatory for health workers in England, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) has said an "informed choice" is better than compulsory vaccination. Health secretary Sajid Javid said today (Nov 9) that health workers in England will have to be vaccinated against Covid-19 by April 1, 2021, making it a mandatory condition of employment for those on the frontline of the NHS. "All those working in the NHS and social care will have to be vaccinated. We must avoid preventable harm and protect patients in the NHS, protect colleagues in the NHS and of course protect the NHS itself," Javid told parliament. The RPS said it "strongly encourages all pharmacists to take advantage of the Covid-19 vaccination programme and to get vaccinated unless there is a medical reason not to do so". It belies that "this is best practice" and part of the pharmacists' responsibility to act in the best interest of their patients.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) Director for Scotland, Clare Morrison will be joining NHS Scotland in January. Morrison has been appointed Director of Community Engagement at Healthcare Improvement Scotland. Paul Bennett, RPS CEO said: "Many people, particularly in Scotland, will know of Clare's passion for quality improvement and patient involvement in the co-design of services. This was demonstrated through her previous work on the development of Near Me, NHS Scotland's video consulting service, and its co-design with the public, patients, clinicians and NHS staff which gained international recognition from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement. "Therefore, this is an exciting opportunity for Clare to join Healthcare Improvement Scotland to take on a strategic leadership role in supporting effective community engagement across health and social care in Scotland. It also enables Clare to make even greater use of her training as an NHS Scotland Scottish Quality & Safety Fellow and we wish her every success in her new role.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) made a recent announcement that the Incubator for Artificial Intelligence (i.AI) and NHS England (NHSE) have joined forces in a groundbreaking move by signing a Collaboration Charter on AI. This pivotal partnership aims to equip the NHS workforce with the tools and resources to leverage AI technology for enhancing patient care, improving staff experience, and driving operational efficiency. The Charter, endorsed by Minister Burghart, Parliamentary Secretary for the Cabinet Office, and Lord Markham, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the DHSC, signifies an important step towards integrating AI into the fabric of the NHS. Under this collaboration, the i.AI team, comprising elite technical experts within the government, will identify opportunities where AI technology can be deployed responsibly to support the NHS. This initiative is expected to streamline processes, optimize resource allocation, and ultimately enhance patient outcomes.

In a significant move to enhance the working conditions of over 50,000 postgraduate doctors in the National Health Service, NHS England has unveiled a series of measures aimed at providing greater choice and opportunities to the new entrants in the medical profession. With flexible rotas, reducing payroll errors, and easing the financial burden of course fees, the NHS has taken steps to address the issues faced by junior doctors in order to support their well-being. In recent announcement, 83 per cent of senior doctors and dentists accepted the government's pay offer. Alongside the junior doctors who still fighting for fair pay and recognition, the senior medical professionals demanded that the authorities help them tackle issues pertaining underfunding and overworking in the NHS. Junior doctors in training also often face challenges with frequent moves between trusts, leading to short notice changes in work schedules and duplicated inductions when transitioning to new hospitals. As a measure taken by the health serivces, the committee aims to review the minimum legal requirements for statutory and mandatory training, potentially halving the time burden for such training and allowing doctors to spend more time caring for patients as part of the long-term workforce plan.

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.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), led by Victoria Atkins MP and Maria Caulfield MP, has unveiled proposed updates to the NHS Constitution for England, aiming to fortify the principles of privacy, dignity, and safety for all patients. Martha's rule was prompted by a campaign led by the parents of 13-year-old Martha Mills who tragically succumbed to sepsis after staff at King's College Hospital failed to escalate her care to intensive care, despite her family's pleas regarding her worsening condition in 2021. Under the new guidance is the introduction of Martha's Rule, empowering patients to request intimate care from someone of the same biological sex ensuring that the distinct needs of men and women are recognized and addressed. Patients and their loved ones can exercise the right to "access to a rapid review from outside the care team if the patient is deteriorating." The consultation on the proposed updates is set to run for eight weeks, inviting feedback from patients, healthcare professionals, and stakeholders for a review

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.

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."

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) launched a new Innovative Medicines Fund on Tuesday (June 7) under which £340 million has been made available to purchase potentially life-saving drugs early. This will allow NHS patients in England to have early access to potentially life-saving and cutting-edge treatments Health secretary Sajid Javid said: "I want NHS patients to be the first in the world to access the most promising and revolutionary treatments that could extend or save their lives. "The launch of the Innovative Medicines Fund delivers another manifesto pledge and will fast-track cutting-edge medicines to adults and children to give people renewed hope for a better future." A total of £680 million has been ringfenced for the Innovative Medicines Fund and Cancer Drugs Fund - £340 million each - to fast-track medicines to NHS patients. DHSC said: "The Innovative Medicines Fund will provide quick access to novel treatments, including potentially lifesaving gene therapies for serious conditions with few treatment options. It often takes longer for pharmaceutical companies to collect data on a medicine's clinical and cost effectiveness for rare diseases due to the smaller patient cohort.

NHS England has confirmed the initial sites that will test and implement Martha's Rule in the first phase of the programme. This follows the announcement in February regarding NHSE funding for the major patient safety initiative for this financial year. The scheme is named after Martha Mills, who died from sepsis at the age of 13 in 2021. She had been treated at King's College Hospital, London, where a failure to escalate her to intensive care and a lack of response to her family's concerns about her deteriorating condition contributed to her death. Martha's Rule aims to provide a consistent and understandable way for patients and families to seek an urgent review if their or their loved one's condition deteriorates and they are concerned this is not being responded to. NHS England on Monday (27 May) announced that the scheme will be implemented at 143 hospital sites across the country by March 2025.

Over the past two years, the Covid pandemic has resulted in a backlog of elective care within the NHS, with record numbers of patients on waiting lists across the UK. Despite efforts to catch up after the first wave, subsequent waves have put further strain on an already stretched NHS system. This has had a tremendous impact on many patients waiting for routine dermatology appointments and, while every effort has been made to see patients with suspected serious skin cancers within two weeks, this target is not always achieved. With rising waiting times, pharmacists are increasingly the first port of call for patients suffering with a broad range of skin problems. From acne and rosacea, eczema or psoriasis, to changing skin lesions or simple insect bites, pharmacists can give helpful advice, allowing some customers to find quick relief to their skin complaint in mild cases, while directing others to see their GP without delay. Below is some practical advice that pharmacists can give to their customers with commonly encountered skin complaints. Acne Acne is a common skin condition that not only affects teenagers but adults too. It is estimated that up to 40 per cent of women continue to suffer with acne into their adult years. Acne has been linked to an increased incidence of depression, anxiety and even suicidal ideation. Patients have reported feeling overlooked and often dismissed in their concerns by health care professionals. Unfortunately, these issues have been further compounded by delays in being seen and treated due to the ongoing Covid pandemic. Pharmacists are well placed to help acne patients choose the right skincare. This should consist of lightweight products, such as gel or milky cleansers, with moisturisers in serum, lotion or light cream preparations. Some acne suitable products are further labelled as non-comedogenic. Oil-based or occlusive preparations are best avoided. There are many good quality, non-comedogenic sun blocks suited

More pharmacies should do NHS Health Checks to improve access, a new study that focuses on ways to improve the lives of people living with obesity, recommends. The report, Levelling Up Obesity Care, by pharma giant Novo Nordisk follows a series of roundtables with patient advocates, healthcare professionals and academics to generate understanding on the future of obesity care in England. Amongst its recommendations, the report says that 'to widen access and alleviate pressure on GP services, consideration should be given to expanding NHS Health Checks in community pharmacy'. NHS Health Checks include a measurement of Body Mass Index (BMI). Those most likely to benefit from a Health Check include people who live in more deprived areas, and are more likely to be living with obesity, says the report.

NHS England and NHS Improvement have issued the patient group direction (PGD) and national protocol for community pharmacy contractors to support flu vaccination of the frontline primary care staff. This follows the announcement pertaining to eligibility of frontline primary care staff for NHS flu vaccinations this season. With the release of protocol, vaccination of these staff can now be commenced as part of the service. Contractors have to keep a manual record of the number of primary care staff they vaccinate in the service and report the same each month on the NHS Business Services Authority's Manage Your Service (MYS) platform.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) and National Pharmacy Association (NPA) have both urged the new health secretary Steve Barclay to back the 'pharmacy first' approach in England as mentioned by his predecessor on numerous occasions. "Sajid Javid recognised the vital role of community pharmacy and the potential of a 'Pharmacy First' to support patient access to care. I would urge the new Health Secretary to see this through to completion," said chair of RPS in England Thorrun Govind. Thorrun hopes the new health secretary will engage with pharmacy leaders about how we can make the most of our health and care workforce to support the NHS recovery, including reducing health inequalities, managing the growing cost of long-term conditions, and utilising the enhanced skills of Pharmacist Independent Prescribers. Commenting on the new appointment, she said: "This is a crucial time for the future of health and care - with continued pressures on teams, changes to NHS structures and organisations, and the need for long-term investment in the workforce. "With a 'refresh' of the NHS Long-Term Plan and the Government's workforce plan expected later this year, these must support a more ambitious approach to advancing the clinical role of pharmacists across the NHS to better meet changing patient demand, backed by investment in pharmacy education and training.

The Pharmacists Defence Association (PDA) has expressed its keenness to work with the NHS nationally and at the ICB level to discuss how the pharmacist workforce can most effectively be part of the multidisciplinary team, after the publication of Long-awaited NHS England workforce plan. Welcoming its publication Alison Jones, PDA Director of Policy said: "It gives greater clarity around the future direction and strategy for professional development, training, and opportunities for those currently working in the health service or considering their future career. There is a strong emphasis on further development of the clinical role of pharmacists to support better patient care. "However, this is a plan that will take years, indeed decades to come to fruition and its success will need to be underpinned by significant funding for its entire life course. Workplace pressures, reductions in support staff, and a lack of protected learning time are matters of immediate concern for many PDA members, issues which are regularly highlighted through activities, such as the safer pharmacies survey.

"Patients deserve choice, but wherever they go they will find vacant nursing posts and overstretched services," responded Professor Pat Cullen, RCN General Secretary and Chief Executive, to the introduction of the new pilot scheme for out-of-hospital patient care. The NHSE and the DHSC have announced a new pilot scheme commencing in autumn "offering patients a choice of where they receive out-of-hospital care". Under the initiative, individuals requiring treatment outside of hospitals will have the opportunity to select from a range of providers across both the NHS and the independent sector. Patients can select their care provider for in-hospital consultant-led services post-GP consultation, offering a choice from at least 5 providers with details on waiting times, distance, and quality.