SECURITY


SIncE thE tErrIblE attacK at mcDonagh’S pharmacY In bElfaSt In aprIl, pIf haS bEEn looKIng at thE lEVEl of VIolEncE anD abUSE cUrrEntlY bEIng pErpEtratED agaInSt commUnItY pharmacIStS throUghoUt thE proVIncE. noW a SErIES of EVEntS IS to bE hElD to conSIDEr hoW pharmacIStS can KEEp thEmSElVES anD thEIr Staff SafE.


zEro tolErancE: proactive stance by pharmacy bodies


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here’s no doubt that violent attacks and burglaries at community pharmacies are on


the increase. last year the police Service of northern Ireland (pSnI) received reports of 620 incidents at pharmacies across the province. these included 499 cases of shoplifting, 23 of burglary and robbery and - perhaps most alarmingly - 28 of assaults and arson. In the last six months, these attacks have escalated and increased in frequency, leading to a number of community pharmacists being stabbed.


‘the predominant motivation for this,’ says Joe brogan, head of pharmacy and medicines management at the health and Social care board (hScb), ‘seems to be access to controlled drugs such as tramadol, but community pharmacists have also reported difficulty with managing patients on substitute prescribing and instalment dispensing.’


as a result, hScb are to hold a series of events to not only encourage community pharmacists and their staff to audit their security measures and attend regular training to keep themselves safe, but to encourage them to record instances of verbal and physical attacks. the events are also designed to let the public know


6 - pharmacY In focUS


that the health service has a zero tolerance approach to abusive and violent behaviour towards front-line health care staff in primary care settings.


‘We will also be using the events to highlight the results of the survey which we recently carried out which have provided a baseline of staff perceptions about abuse and violence,’ Joe brogan continues. ‘the survey had a relatively good uptake, with around 150 responses. the general perception among those, who completed the survey, was that there was a high level of anxiety over the violence and crime that is being perpetrated. Incidents have been relatively well covered in the media and this has reinforced the feelings of stress and concern among staff.


‘We have been working with both crime prevention officers and the pSnI to put steps in place to support individuals in pharmacy. the various pharmacy bodies are also providing training and onsite risk assessments and, once all of these are completed, the pSnI will be working with the board on an ongoing basis.


‘the premises survey is still open and it is very important that all pharmacists respond to this. the


Joe Brogan


EVEnt DEtaIlS ‘zero tolerance - promoting safety in community pharmacy’ 21 September 2017 - 7.30pm-9.30pm - riddel hall, belfast 25 September 2017 - 7.30pm-9.30pm - tullyglass house hotel, ballymena 2 hours of learning


aIm to promote safety within the community pharmacy workplace.


lEarnIng oUtcomES having completed this workshop you should be able to: • understand the impact of work-related violence • promote a zero tolerance approach to work-related violence within your pharmacy


• identify measures to enhance security within your pharmacy • adopt strategies to prevent work-related incidents • manage an incident within your pharmacy. the event, which is open to all community pharmacists, will launch a combined pharmacy initiative to promote safety within community pharmacies by informing the public that neither violence nor abusive behaviour will be tolerated against community pharmacists and their staff.


purpose is to understand where gaps in premises design exist and address how these gaps can not only be identified, but corrected.


‘these three events are designed to raise awareness of the issues, to signpost pharmacies to the bodies who can help them to address safety concerns and, finally, to raise public awareness of the campaign. We want the public to know that we are applying a ‘zero tolerance’ approach to abuse and violence in pharmacies. ‘Ideally we’d like as many pharmacists as possible to attend one of these events to ensure that the message is clear throughout northern Ireland. going forward, the pSnI will be


increasingly ‘on the ground’ in high- risk areas and we hope that this will go some way towards addressing this increasingly worrying problem.’


‘cpnI has been working with hScb, Doh (nI) and pharmacy organisations to review security arrangements in community pharmacies,’ said gerard greene, chief Executive of cpnI. ‘together, we will look at the measures already in place and identify how these can be enhanced to protect pharmacy staff and reduce the risk of future attacks. We will also support a zero tolerance message towards abuse of all community pharmacy and front-line primary care staff.’ •


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