Bolton LPC Update
28th February 2022
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Reminder: GPCPCS Pharmacy Events
The Greater Manchester Healthcare Academy (GMHCA), CHL, Bolton LPC, and Greater Manchester LPC (GMLPC) are hosting a series of webinars that aim to provide support on accepting referrals, completing consultations efficiently and in line with local protocols, how to deal with escalations effectively and the sharing of best practice tips in relationship building.
Objectives of the session
- Provide guidance and support on how to make GP CPCS a success in your pharmacy
- Reaffirm how the whole pharmacy team can support with delivery of the service
- Remind pharmacies of their contractual requirements for service provision
- Share best practice information and top tips based on 8 months of referrals and working with pharmacies and general practices in GM
- Share examples of presenting symptoms and best practice completed consultations, including concise but complete consultation notes
This session will equip Community Pharmacy teams with support and guidance on how to successfully deal with patients being referred from general practice via GP CPCS.
There are two further opportunities to attend the webinar (you only need to attend once) over the next couple of months which include both lunchtime and evening sessions:
Please Note: These sessions are for GMLPC and Bolton LPCs contractors only.
The webinars will be held via zoom and can be accessed by the links above.
If you have any queries about the webinars please contact enquiries@cpgmhealthcare.co.uk.
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Reminder: PQS Declaration Window now open
Deadline Wednesday 2nd March 2022
To ensure you have as much time as possible to submit your claims, PSNC and NHSE&I have agreed that the PQS declaration window will be extended and will now close on Wednesday 2nd March 2022 at 11:59pm. The timing of the PQS payment will not be affected by this change; contractors claiming for a PQS payment will still receive their payment on 1st April 2022.
PSNC have published an updated version of the PQS Briefing – Important dates for the diary, which reflects the above date changes as well as dates relating to the extension of the Scheme.
Further information and resources regarding PQS can be found on the PSNC website.
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Smoking Cessation Service start date announced
The new Smoking Cessation Service (SCS) will officially commence on 10th March 2022 and contractors will be able to register to provide the service on the Manage Your Service (MYS) portal from 1st March 2022.
A draft version of the SCS service specification is now available and PSNC has published a range of resources to support contractors.
Read more and download our SCS resources
For referrals to take place a referral mechanism from the hospitals needs to be in place. At this time we have no detail as to when this will happen but will be linking in with local systems and commissioners.
We do not anticipate any significant numbers of referrals in the next few months.
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Pharmacy Collect: update for contractors
Service ends 31st March 2022
Free mass testing for COVID-19 is due to end from 1st April 2022. This means the last day on which the Pharmacy Collect service will operate will be 31st March 2022.
To ensure an even distribution of lateral flow tests across the country, UKHSA are planning future deliveries across all test distribution channels. Alliance Healthcare’s last delivery of tests from the UKHSA warehouse will be on 18th March 2022. Pharmacies will be able to order for a short period of time after that date.
UKHSA ask that all orders for kits placed by contractors with Alliance Healthcare should be based on the current need, driven by demand, rather than trying to cover future demand.
Further details about the service end, including information on final payment claims, will be provided to contractors as soon as those details have been finalised.
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Receive referred back and disallowed items via MYS
Contractors signed up to the MYS portal can now receive their referred back prescriptions and disallowed items from the NHSBSA digitally using the portal instead of by post.
Learn more, including how to request these digitally
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Pandemic Delivery Service
The Pandemic Delivery service has now ended in line with the Governments’ strategy for living with Covid.
Pharmacy contractors can still make prescription deliveries to eligible patients who have a CTAS number issued on or before 23 February 2022 if the CTAS number is valid (ie during the maximum 10-day window for self-isolation).
No medicine deliveries should be made as part of the Pandemic Delivery Service after 5 March 2022.
Claims for the Advanced service (for deliveries) must be submitted no later than 5 April 2022 to be remunerated for any deliveries made on or before 5 March 2022.
The payment for the Essential service element of the Pandemic Delivery Service will continue until 31 March 2022.
Learn more about the end of the service
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Living with COVID-19 – update for contractors
Following the publication of the new Government policy on 'Living with COVID-19', NHSE&I have issued initial guidance to NHS service providers, including community pharmacy contractors.
The key points for community pharmacy are summarised below:
Staff who test positive – Healthcare staff who have tested positive for COVID-19 should not attend work until they have had two negative LFD test results taken 24 hours apart. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) will be updating its guidance tomorrow.
Testing for patients and staff – NHSE&I will provide more information in the coming weeks, but current testing protocols should continue until further guidance is received.
Infection, Prevention and Control (IPC) – there are no immediate changes around the requirement to wear a mask/face covering in healthcare settings.
Find out more and read the NHSE&I letter in full
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Reminder: Have you confirmed your choice of CPCS IT system?
The national procurement of IT support for the NHS CPCS service is due to stop at the end of March 2022. Community pharmacy contractors that wish to continue providing CPCS must, therefore, confirm their choice of CPCS IT system by no later than February 2022. Failure to do so could impact referrals and service continuity.
Guides from PSNC and NHSX list the verified system suppliers and explain how contractors can either confirm that they wish to stay with their current IT provider or switch to a new provider.
Read the guides and learn more about this change
Please note: This is for referrals from NHS111 only - referrals for the GP pathway will continue in the usual way
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Updated: Live Serious Shortage Protocols
There are three Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) currently in place which are listed on the PSNC Website and below with the expiry date:
- SSP05: Fluoxetine 10mg tablets - Extended until 13th May 2022
- SSP015: Paracetamol 120mg and 240mg suppositories - extended until 4th March 2022
- SSP016: Lipitor 10mg chewable tablets - until 18th March 2022
- SSP017: Lipitor 20mg chewable tablets - until 30th March 2022
For more general information about what SSPs are and when they may be used, please see the PSNC website.
Details will be updated above as and when changes occur, but the most up-to-date information is available from the NHSBSA
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GPCPCS Go-Live (Last Update: 14th February 2022)
The following practices have requested a go-live date in February / early March:
- Dr Earnshaw & Partners
- Stable Fold Practice
- Unsworth Group Surgery
- Burnside Surgery
- Dr Malhotra and Partners
- Dr Loomba and Partners
- Harwood Health Centre
- Dr Zarrouk
- Dr Jain, Little Lever
- Crompton View Surgery
- Shanti Medical Centre
- Beehive Surgery
- Dr Sidda – Waters Meeting
- Al-Fal Medical Group
- Dr Selverajan
The following Practices are now live with GPCPCS:
- Swan Lane Medical Centre
- Dr Uddin & Partners
- Breightmet HC (Dunstan)
- Kearsley Medical Centre
- Drs Jeyam & Jesudas
- Stonehill Medical Centre
- Bolton Community Practice – All sites
- Heaton Medical Centre
- Drs Karim & James-Authe
- Bolton Community Practice
- Cornerstone Surgery
- Spring House
- Dalefield Surgery
- Garnet Fold
- Dr Hendy & Rizwan
- Tonge Fold Health Centre
- Deane Medical Centre
- Breightmet HC (Alastair Ross)
- Dr Hallikeri (Little Lever)
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Urgent GP CPCS Referrals
We are receiving feedback from practices in relation to referrals not being completed within the agreed timeframe and patients not being contacted within 2-3 hours.
If you are struggling to provide the service and wish to pause referrals for a short period of time please contact your local practices and advise them of this.
If you wish to be removed from the active list of providers please email england.gmtop@nhs.net.
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GPCPS Do's & Don'ts
Download a printable version here
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Actions for Community Pharmacy Teams
- Pharmacies must check PharmOutcomes and NHSmail regularly throughout the day for referrals
- Referrals sent by 2:30pm Monday to Friday must be acted upon the same day by the pharmacy
- Referrals sent after 2:30pm must be reviewed by the pharmacist to identify if action is required the same day
- For non-urgent escalations (routine GP appointment, not same day) and urgent escalations – the pharmacist must telephone the practice to arrange the appointment. Patients must not be sign-posted back to the practice.
Please ensure your pharmacy team is well prepared to start accepting referrals (referrals may go to any pharmacy providing the service in Bolton) and that there is a robust process in place for you and your team to regularly check and monitor PharmOutcomes for any new referrals This includes ensuring locums are also able to check for and accept referrals.
We have enabled access to the CPCS resources in VirtualOutcomes for all pharmacy teams in Greater Manchester, please access them here. You will need your pharmacy ODS code to login.
Contractual obligations regarding Service Availability:
6. Service availability
- 6.1 The pharmacy contractor must ensure that the service is available to patients throughout the pharmacy’s full opening hours (i.e. core and supplementary).
- 6.2 Ensure all pharmacy team members, including locums and relief pharmacists, are aware of the procedures to be followed in the event of a temporary suspension of the service and have easy access to the key contact numbers for the service (they should be recorded in the SOP for the service).
- 6.3 Ensure all pharmacy team members, including locums and relief pharmacists, are aware of how to contact the support team for the NHS CPCS IT system if there is a problem with the system. Include the contact details in the SOP for the service.
- 6.4 When locums are being booked to work at the pharmacy, make sure the locum is made aware that the NHS CPCS is being provided and ensure they can provide the service.
For more information about the service including a a range of useful resources and local processes please see the Bolton LPC website.
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Greater Manchester GPCPCS FAQ
Download a copy of the FAQ here.
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New: Controlled drugs in chronic pain: supporting patients with safe and effective use e-learning
On the 17th January 2022 CPPE launched the Controlled drugs in Chronic pain: supporting patients with safe and effective use e-learning.
The two and a half hour programme aims to support all pharmacy professionals to develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours to support patients to use prescribed controlled drugs safely and effectively, with a focus on controlled drugs used in chronic pain.
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CPPE Discharge Medicine Service
The following CPPE training is available to support the extended cohorts of patients now being referred for the Discharge Medicines Service
These can be accessed on the following links:
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The GM Healthcare Academy
The GM Healthcare is a partnership of:
- Greater Manchester Health & Social Care Partnership (NHS and local authorities
- Bolton Local Pharmaceutical Committee
- Greater Manchester Local Pharmaceutical Committee
- Greater Manchester Pharmacy Local Professional Network
It aims to support and deliver high quality training to community pharmacy teams across Greater Manchester. Find out more about their work here.
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March Deadline Tracker
The Deadline Tracker for March 2022 can be downloaded from the LPC website.
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Previously Circulated Information
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Action Required - DoS Updater and NHS website editor to be replaced soon
Contractors currently use two different NHS systems to ensure their pharmacy details are up to date in the NHS 111 Directory of Services (DoS) and on the NHS website: the NHS website profile editor and the DoS Profile Updater. Both of these tools are due to be replaced by a new tool, called NHS Profile Manager, which is scheduled for release in early March 2022.
To get ready for this change, pharmacy contractors or team members should register for the new NHS Profile Manager with their personal NHSmail address, if they have not already done so.
Find out more about this change
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Secretary of State emergency declaration extension
Extended until 31st March 2022
The declaration of an emergency requiring the flexible provision of pharmaceutical services which was introduced to help maintain pharmacy services during the COVID-19 outbreak, has been extended to 31st March 2022
This means that contractors are still allowed to make temporary changes to opening hours or temporary closures where:
- Adequate reasons for these changes have been provided to NHS England and NHS Improvement (NHSE&I);
- NHSE&I have been given 24 hours’ notice of these changes; and
- NHSE&I have agreed these changes or have not objected to them.
After 24 hours’ notice has been given and in the absence of a response from NHSE&I, contractors may start the flexible provision of opening hours. However, if their flexible opening-hours request is refused by NHSE&I, contractors must continue to provide their normal service provision and remain open for the entirety of their core and supplementary hours.
Further information about the emergency regulations is available on PSNC’S COVID 19 Hub page
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Reminder: IPC guidance still applies to pharmacies
Following the Government's announcement that from January 27th, face coverings will no longer be mandatory in public places, pharmacy teams are reminded that the UKHSA's infection prevention control (IPC) guidance will continue to apply to patients and staff in healthcare settings, including community pharmacy, to ensure that everyone is protected.
Resources supporting the IPC guidance, including posters to use at entrances to notify visitors that they must wear a face covering, are available for download.
Download the IPC guidance resources
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