COvER STORy
negotiating body to provide a sound financial footing for the provision of pharmaceutical services,” he said.
“This is a disservice to both the hard working pharmacists in Northern Ireland but more importantly to the patients and people here, who deserve a first class pharmacy service. They should be no different from any other region in the UK where more extensive pharmaceutical services are available. I urge both CPNI and the Department of Health to work harder to achieve a fair solution. Repetitive legal action is not the solution, whether it is deemed the only recourse or not.”
Where does community pharmacy go from here?
The real issue for the profession is that pharmacists have yet to articulate what they think the future should look like - does it actually know?
It is evident the squeeze is on and it is how pharmacy will react to that which will have the greatest impact and makes the context within which you all work the most difficult. Successive Health Ministers have pledged their support for the overarching strategy ‘Transforming your Care’ but this will be delivered in the context of a squeeze on public finance and a transforming of the health and social care structures.
Surely now is the time, more than ever, for Northern Ireland’s community pharmacists to exert their voice, make themselves be heard. What do you want to happen?
The judicial review was around the implementation of the COSI as well as interim payments - that much is understood. COSI will be important in determining the future global sum.
However the COSI is based on services provided back in 2011. you just need to look at the latest developments, such as Health+Pharmacy to know how things have changed since 2011, and will continue to change and so many are rightly asking, ‘What sort of service will the Department want community pharmacy to deliver in the future? Just hub and spoke? Health +Pharmacy? Integrated Medicines Optimisation solutions for patients?’
Where will community pharmacy find itself in those new structures and processes?
Who will decide that?
How pharmacy will be integrated into the new structures and how they respond to these new developments remains to be seen. But pharmacists should be looking to the future and asking how you want to influence the conversation on your value so that you can continue to have sway on the continued development of your profession.
Omagh Pharmacist Liam Bradley urges all contractors to get involved in the process, “While the decision of the recent JR is disappointing, by participating in the cost of service investigation (COSI), community pharmacy contractors now have the opportunity to show what it actually takes to provide the first class community pharmacy service we have in Northern Ireland. “I would encourage all contractors to avail of this opportunity and return their COSI ensuring their return includes all the costs of running their pharmacy, as this should allow the investigation to reflect the true cost of providing the current pharmacy service.”
Looking to the Future The protracted negotiations for a core pharmacy contract are in sharp contrast with the changes happening within primary care: pharmacists in GP practices, the HSCB closing and the continued development of Integrated Care Partnerships.
Add to this the inception of the Medicines Optimisation strategy and it becomes obvious that all these developments should be viewed as opportunities for community and primary care pharmacy, as opposed to threats.
There is currently so much to be positive about. Health+Pharmacy being just one; a tremendous opportunity for pharmacy to build their health promotion accreditation and cement their healthcare status as the frontline providers. Health + Pharmacy is a cornerstone of the strategy for pharmacy, designed to raise standards to offer an improved health service to patients at its most accessible point. This is a platform from which pharmacy can showcase the invaluable work it does within the community.
We know from the Ulster Chemists’ Association that their members want the pharmacy profession to be recognised as an integral part of the primary care team and to be valued for the high quality service they provide to patients and the difference they make and from its inception. Initiatives such as the development of Integrated Care Partnerships have successfully broken down barriers between the various professions within primary care.
Through these groups, new and fruitful relationships have been established which are already starting to have a positive impact on community pharmacy.
President Cliff McElhinney back at the end of January added, “The NUFFIELD report was published, followed by vISION 20:20 from the pharmaceutical society. They said that Pharmacy is an underused resource, pharmacists can do so much more, and pharmacists can alleviate pressure on other primary care services. Sound familiar?
pharmacyinfocus.co.uk 11
“If we continue to be slavishly tied to our dispensary we are on a road to nowhere. If we are to continue as a profession, if the community pharmacy network is to remain strong, then we need to engage with those who are commissioning change.”
“I think so, because 27 years later the same message is being repeated by all the pharmacy organisations, the Department and others. So not enough has changed. I still hear that this is a time of transition for community pharmacy. I really hope that this time it is.
“There are more highly qualified pharmacists being produced by both Northern Ireland universities than ever. They amaze me with their enthusiasm, drive and ambition. Their clinical knowledge was the stuff that I would have envied when I qualified all those years ago.”
Look at the most recent news of GP funding for the placement of pharmacists within their surgeries to know the value being placed on the professions clinical knowledge.
A move which Health Minister Simon Hamilton reflected was a greater use of pharmacists’ skills. “We have a great resource in our pharmacists whom we want to better utilise to work directly alongside GPs and nurses,” he said. “Not only will this approach deliver a better service for patients, it is also common sense to ensure we make the most effective use of the skills and experience we have in health and social care."
Cliff adds, “Pharmacists need to be more visible to patients, GP’s and commissioners of services. We have highly trained, competent staff who can dispense. We need to deliver and be paid for these new services. Providing quantifiable positive clinical outcomes for the general population.”
“If we continue to be slavishly tied to our dispensary we are on a road to nowhere. If we are to continue as a profession, if the community pharmacy network is to remain strong, then we need to engage with those who are commissioning change. Dispensing will remain at the core of what we do as far as the public are concerned. It is up to us to challenge that idea and prove that we are so much more than dispensers.”
In its current strategy, the UCA reiterated its principle objective of promoting and protecting members in community and primary care pharmacy and that is why they have chosen to reintroduce membership for non-contractor pharmacists to enable and encourage all pharmacists to take personal and collective responsibility for the development of the profession. The whole network needs to mobilise to articulate what their vision for pharmacy is and to propel the profession forward. n
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64