NEWS
CONSULTATION ON HUB AND
SPOKE The Department of Health and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency have launched a consultation on changes to the Human Medicines Regulations and the Medicines Act.
The consultation seeks views on the following proposed changes:
• allowing independent pharmacies to make use of ‘hub and spoke’ dispensing models – a ‘hub’ pharmacy dispenses medicines on a large scale, often by making use of automation, preparing and assembling the medicines for regular ‘spoke’ pharmacies that supply the medicines to the patient;
• allowing the price of medicines and a statement on how the costs of medicines are met to be published on dispensing labels should this be required for NHS medicines dispensed as part of NHS pharmaceutical services;
• clarifying the current dispensing label requirements for monitored dosage systems and medicines supplied under patient group directions; and
• amending the pharmacists’ exemption in section 10 of the Medicines Act, regarding the preparation and assembly of medicines, following a judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union.
NPA NEWS
The Department of Health has recently launched a consultation on proposals to amend the Human Medicines Regulations 2012, including enabling ‘hub and spoke’ dispensing across different legal entities.
Currently, only pharmacies which are part of a chain are able to use 'hub and spoke' models. In some models, hub pharmacies may supply medicines directly to the patient using a delivery company, removing the need for a spoke pharmacy and reducing patient and public contact with the pharmacy, a cause for great concern to the community pharmacy network.
The NPA has recently undertaken an investigation into the hub and spoke model which highlighted a number of
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significant legal, practice and economic concerns. These were reported in a webinar, which is available to view online on
www.npa.co.uk.
Also potentially of great significance to pharmacy practice in Northern Ireland is the DHSSPS public consultation on pharmacy regulation. Health Minister Simon Hamilton has agreed in principal to split the regulatory and professional leadership functions of the Pharmaceutical Society which could potentially mean a UK-wide regulatory arrangement. The NPA will be responding on behalf of members.
If you would like to share your views with the NPA on either consultation please email
a.mcalister@
npa.co.uk
We are pleased to announce highly competitive rates for a full range of flu, oral and travel PGDs (with associated training). We will be booking dates in Northern Ireland for vaccination training in the coming weeks. To find out more call 01727891800 or email
npapgdservices@npa.co.uk.
The NPA along with other organisations including the Pharmacy Forum, UCA and CPNI sits on a Pharmacy Professional and Representative Bodies (PPRB) implementation group, tasked with working collaboratively with the DHSSPS and HSCB to implement the community pharmacy strategy.
The work includes raising awareness of pharmacy capabilities and services.
We are currently looking at communicating with patient advocate groups, ensuring that patients right across the health and social care spectrum are aware of pharmacy services. You can get involved on social media using the hashtag #ThinkPharmacyNI
Finally, may we remind you to visit
www.npa.co.uk to access the NPA’s new safeguarding resources and information on the controlled drugs legislation changes introduced on 1st March.
New strategy focuses NI on being a eHealth Leader
The e-Health and Care Strategy for Northern Ireland’s health and social care service has been launched, with a vision to make the country a leader in this field.
The strategy sets out plans for the increased use of innovative technologies in the delivery of health and social care between now and 2020. It incorporates a package of new online initiatives to allow citizens to interact with the Health and Social Care system and to provide information on self-care and health and care services including the next steps towards the introduction of an Electronic Health and Care Record (EHCR).
Having an EHCR has the potential to revolutionise the delivery of health and social care says Health Minister Simon Hamilton.
The Minister said: “Technology is advancing at an impressive rate all the time bringing with it incredible opportunities to help us transform how we deliver health and social care. I want Northern Ireland to be in the international elite in utilising new technologies to assist us in improving the quality and safety of health and social care and do so in ways that reduce bureaucracy for staff, make our system more efficient, better join up services and, above all, enhance the patient experience.
“Our new e-Health and Care Strategy is our vision of what is possible in Northern Ireland. At its heart is my commitment to move towards the development of an Electronic Health and Care Record (EHCR) for Northern
Ireland. I have directed £1million from the Transformation Fund I announced yesterday to be used to progress a number of areas within the Strategy over the next 12 months, including preparatory work in the development of an EHCR.”
The EHCR can provide accurate, up-to- date and complete information about patients at every point of care; • It will increase the time that doctors, nurses, therapists and social workers have to spend with patients. A 15- minute increase in care time by reducing bureaucracy equates to over 1,000 additional care professionals; • It could reduce treatment and discharge delays in hospital, and contribute significantly to reducing length of stay; • It enables safer and more reliable prescribing of medication; • It will allow the use health analytics to improve population heath and care planning; and • It will help the Health and Social Care system to become ‘paperless’.
“Clearly this would be a very significant investment to make and that is why I have asked officials to ensure they continue to learn from best practice across the world as they develop the case for this investment but I believe there is a strong case for developing our own Electronic Health and Care Record as a key element of creating a world class Health Service,” he added.
“We have already experienced success with the introduction of the national award winning NI Electronic Care Record which is regularly being used
by 20,000 Health and Care
professionals and will provide a strong foundation upon which to build a fully integrated digital health and care record system for Northern Ireland.”
The Minister was speaking as he visited the Old Mill Surgery in Newtownards where he was able to learn more about new services allowing people to book GP appointments and order repeat prescriptions online.
“It is clear that new digital services to allow people to book GP appointments and order repeat prescriptions online are making a positive impact. These facilities make life easier for patients, giving them extra convenience and choice in how they interact with their GP surgeries. They also help to reduce administration for staff at the practice. 90% of GP practices will be able to offer these services by June, and all practices by the end of this year, he concluded.
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