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Speaking up for community pharmacy
Issue 110, 17th March 2017
Shaping community pharmacy regulation - update from Kate Livesey
A priority work area for Pharmacy Voice is ensuring the community pharmacy practice, regulation and professional development environment meets the needs of our members and the sector.  This involves engaging with and working closely with partner organisations, including the regulator for pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and pharmacy premises – the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC).
Towards the end of 2016, the GPhC launched a series of consultations to gather the views of stakeholders, patients and pharmacy professionals, on changes they were looking to make to their standards.  In total there were four consultations running this quarter, all of which Pharmacy Voice has now issued responses to, using valuable input and views from members of our Pharmacy Practice Group and our Pharmacy Workforce Development Group.  A short summary of our approach to each consultation is outlined below.  You can find out more, or read the responses in full, by visiting the consultation responses section of the Pharmacy Voice website, or clicking ‘read more’ on any of the consultations you are interested in below.
Pharmacist independent prescribers
Pharmacy Voice welcomes the GPhC’s proposed changes to the supervision requirements of pharmacist independent prescribers in training, but we feel that this is one part of a bigger picture.  In order to make full use of the knowledge and skills of community pharmacists, the entire approach to achieving independent prescriber status requires review…. Read more.
 
Initial education and training standards for pharmacy technicians
We are broadly supportive of the approach the GPhC has taken to reviewing initial education standards for pharmacy technicians, but our response highlights some areas of the standards which we believe require further consideration, particularly relating to the language or terminology being used and the level at which some of the proposed learning outcomes have been set…. Read more.
 
Religion, personal values and beliefs
Pharmacy Voice agrees with the proposed changes to the wording used in the standards for pharmacy professionals relating to religion, personal values and beliefs, but we highlight that some further examples and case studies should be used in the revised guidance document…. Read more.
 
Revised threshold criteria
Our response welcomes the proposed threshold criteria, which have been aligned to the standards for pharmacy professionals due to launch later this year, but highlights that these are not as clear and understandable as they should be…. Read more.
 
More news & views
Brexit 
Now that the Government is poised to activate article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the everyday realities of Brexit negotiations and the eventual divorce of the United Kingdom from the EU will begin to emerge. This is certainly the case in the health sector and, in preparation for the growing uncertainty on what this will mean for the NHS, they have released a ‘Brexit Bulletin’.  This fully featured newsletter covers a wide range of issues, including blogs and podcats. It also examines the challenges the NHS will face in a post-Brexit UK, and what steps are being taken to mitigate them.
 
You can review the first edition of the bulletin by clicking here.
Meanwhile, Pharmacy Voice has remained closely involved with the Cavendish Coalition. This group of trade of representative bodies was setup to provide guidance to Government about the consequences of Brexit for wider healthcare delivery, with much of its focus on workforce issues. Its most recent activity included responding to a House of Lords inquiry into any issues that might result from NHS staffing as a result of the UK’s EU exit. Among the recommendations made, the coalition called for:
  • confirmation of the right to remain in the UK for EU nationals currently working in social care and health roles in the UK
  • a migration system, working alongside our domestic workforce strategy, which enables the UK to continue to be able to attract talented professionals to help the sector provide the best care
You can review the coalition’s evidence submission in full by clicking here.
What we have been up to recently...
As you will already know, there is lots going on at the moment in the world of pharmacy and the PV team has been splitting its time between our desks, meeting rooms and various events.

Below, we are highlighting just a few events that colleagues attended this week. If you have a particular interest in any of them, or wish to share your thoughts, please get in touch!

NICE Committee meeting on Community pharmacy: promoting health and wellbeing
Attended by Kate Livesey, Senior Policy and Programme Adviser

This Wednesday, Kate Livesey attended as a public observer at the first Advisory Committee meeting for the NICE Community pharmacy: promoting health and wellbeing guideline which is in the initial stages of development.  The Committee reviewed what evidence was currently available on the overall effectiveness of community pharmacy in signposting and referring to other services, providing information, behavioural support and advice or education for health and wellbeing.  As per the agreed guideline scope, the Committee will be reviewing the evidence available, as well as any gaps in evidence, with view to putting forward a series of recommendations in 2018.  Find out more about the Guideline and the work of the Committee on the NICE website. 
Social Media - Tweets of the week
 
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We are an association of trade bodies representing community pharmacy with one, unified voice.
 
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