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Next steps for pharmacy in healthcare delivery in England
Patient Safety Learning posted a calendar event in Community Calendar
untilThis Westminster Health Forum conference will focus on next steps for pharmacy services in healthcare delivery, and opportunities to develop the role of community pharmacy as part of the health service in England. It comes amidst proposals to increase prescribing powers for pharmacists and reform training to enable pharmacists to work as independent prescribers immediately following graduation, as well as the Health Secretary announcing additional pharmacy services within the Primary Care Recovery Plan, and also indicating that implementation of a Pharmacy First system in England is being considered. The conference takes place against the backdrop of an evolving healthcare landscape, including developments in integrated care systems and digital transformation, an expected update to the NHS Long Term Plan, and wider strategic initiatives to implement alternatives to medicine, such as the Overprescribing Review. We expect discussion on opportunities to develop pharmacy services as a key component of future NHS and community care delivery. It will include keynote sessions with Gisela Abbam, Chair, General Pharmaceutical Council; Andrew Lane, Chair, National Pharmacy Association; Matthew Armstrong, Senior Manager, Pharmacy Contracts and Project Developments, Walgreens Boots Alliance; and a senior speaker confirmed from the Professional Record Standards Body. Overall, areas for discussion include: strategic ambitions: the opportunity for a Pharmacy First scheme in England - long-term aims for pharmacy services in the context of an updated NHS Long Term Plan. community pharmacy: future role in improvements to key service areas such as general practice, primary care and the ambulance service - delivering medicine optimisation in community care. the workforce: priorities for upskilling - improving training to increase the number of independent prescribers and develop the services that pharmacists can offer. digital pharmacy: key areas for expansion - supporting efficiency in prescription management - potential for digital services to allow patients more control over their care. further development areas: social prescribing services and non-medical treatments - the NHS STOMP programme - structured medicine reviews to support reduction of overprescribing. Register -
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Shortage of cold medicines in UK is government’s fault, say pharmacists
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
A shortage of cough and cold medicines in the UK is a result of ministers’ “lack of planning”, according to pharmacy leaders. Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives were accused of “being in denial” as supply chain problems worsen, with pharmacists reporting shortages of once-common cold and flu medicines. The Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies said throat lozenges, cough mixtures and some painkillers are among the affected medicines, after issues with the supply of antibiotics and HRT last year. “Pharmacists are struggling to obtain the very basic, most common cold and flu medicine,” chief executive Leyla Hannbeck told the PA news agency. “This isn’t just the branded medicines, it is also simple things like throat lozenges, cough mixtures or painkillers – particularly the ones that are soluble. “The demand has been high because this season we’ve seen higher cases of colds and flu and people are obviously trying very hard to look after themselves and making sure that they use the relevant products to manage the symptoms. “And that has led to a shortage of these products in terms of us not being able to obtain them.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 4 January 2023 -
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Strep A kills three more children as UK activates alternative medicines plan
Patient Safety Learning posted a news article in News
Three more children have died from strep A, it has emerged, and pharmacists in the UK have been told they can supply alternative antibiotics to those originally prescribed, in a bid to ease shortages of certain forms of penicillin. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) data shows at least 19 children have now died across the UK, while there are 7,750 cases of scarlet fever so far this season. This is more than treble the 2,538 at the same point in the year during the last comparably high season in 2017 to 2018. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has issued serious shortage protocols (SSPs) for three penicillin medicines amid increased demand for the antibiotics. Pharmacists and GPs in the UK have faced serious difficulties in securing supplies of penicillin and amoxycillin, antibiotics used to treat infections including strep A. As a result, parents have reported having to visit a string of pharmacies to obtain medicines prescribed for their sick children, while the price of some antibiotics has risen sharply – a situation pharmacists say has left them facing losses. The health minister Will Quince said: “The increased demand for the antibiotics prescribed to treat strep A has meant some pharmacists have been unable to supply the medicine shown on the prescription. “These serious shortage protocols will allow pharmacists to supply an alternative form of penicillin, which will make things easier for them, patients, and GPs. “We are taking decisive action to address these temporary issues and improve access to these medicines by continuing to work with manufacturers and wholesalers to speed up deliveries, bring forward stock they have to help ensure it gets to where it’s needed, and boost supply to meet demand as quickly as possible.” Read full story Source: The Guardian, 15 December 2022 -
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Each NHS Trust and local pharmacies in Dorset have been promoting awareness and providing updates for staff and patients on medications without harm and medicines safety following World Patient Safety Day in September. On Monday 17 October we held a face-to-face event to share learning from medicines incidents and to specifically focus on the safety improvement programme to reduce harm from opiate drugs in our communities. This provided an excellent opportunity to network with other healthcare professionals. Speakers on the day were: Head of Medicines Improvement at NHS Dorset who set the scene for the morning with facts and figures for discussion. Clinical Lead for the Wessex Academic Health Science Network Polypharmacy programme provided an update on the wider safety improvement work. Patient Safety Specialist with NHS Dorset presented a patient story of a person that died following accidental fatal intoxication with liquid morphine. Deputy Chief Pharmacist at Dorset County Hospital (DCH) and long serving Medicines Safety officer in Dorset shared the improvement work that has taken place in DCH in relation to opiate prescribing on discharge. Dr Sarah Kay, GP lead for Patient Safety with NHS Dorset, concluded the morning with a facilitated discussion session to share best practice and consider how organisations can work together to improve medicines safety. Attendees included Primary Care Network (PCN) pharmacists, hospital trust pharmacists, NHSD patient safety teams, medicines optimisation team, primary care team, AHSNs. In Dorset we prescribe almost double the volume of liquid opioids to patients in our hospitals when compared with others in our region. This increases the risk of prolonged prescribing in primary care, which can lead to long-term tolerance and dependency, and contributes to nearly 700 patients requesting multiple liquid opioid prescriptions each month for chronic non-cancer pain. This prescribing is having a disproportionate impact on women between 40 and 60 years of age and in more deprived areas of our county. At the event, we heard from some acute trusts and PCN colleagues who are having success in reducing opiate usage and promoting safe pain management strategies for people, as well as from the Wessex AHSN who can support ongoing improvement programmes. The morning was compered by NHS Dorset Patient Safety Partner (volunteer lay role) Simon Wraw who ensured the patient perspective was part of our discussions. The opportunity to meet face to face with colleagues was really valuable, as well as making new counterpart connections for each professional group. Feedback from attendees was positive and we hope to run a similar event in the future with a different topic focus. On the topic of networking, we have also contributed to the setup of the NHSE South West GP Quality Network. A scoping meeting was held in October to co-produce a plan for the network with participants. We hope to build the network, so if you work in any patient safety role across the South West and have an interest in general practice and connecting with colleagues to share good ideas and troubleshoot problems together please get in touch. The next network meeting will be 22 February 2023. Please email england.swqualityhub@nhs.net for an invite. Further reading See our recent Patient Safety Spotlight interview with Sarah and Jaydee. -
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SMASH GM Dashboard – Launch event webinar
Patient Safety Learning posted a calendar event in Community Calendar
untilThe new and re-developed SMASH Dashboard is now ready for rollout across Greater Manchester. The Safety Medication Dashboard (SMASH) has been developed and tested by GM PSTRC researchers. It builds on the same prescribing indicators as PINCER and is a pharmacist-led intervention using audit and feedback. In this 1-hour webinar, we will showcase the new dashboard which utilises the GMCR BI Analytics Platform and provide an overview on how it works, and how it differs from the current platform. We will share the journey the SMASH has been on to this point, and the benefits it will now bring to the GM system. Details will also be provided on how to access and set up accounts, and the local processes to follow. We will have guest speakers on the day from across all of the SMASH journey and an opportunity, if time, to answer some questions. Agenda Outline: Introduction The SMASH Journey The New Dashboard and Tutorial Benefits of the New Platform Access and Processes for Your Locality Q & A Register -
Content ArticleBased on initial system requirements, Williams et al. designed the dashboard’s user interface over three iterations with six GPs, seven pharmacists and a member of the public. Prescribing safety indicators from previous work were implemented in the dashboard. Pharmacists were trained to use the intervention and deliver it to general practices. A web-based electronic dashboard was developed and linked to shared care records in Salford, UK. The completed dashboard was deployed in all but one (general practices in the region. By November 2017, 36 pharmacists had been trained in delivering the intervention to practices. There were 135 registered users of the dashboard, with an average of 91 user sessions a week. The authors have developed and successfully rolled out of a complex, pharmacist-led dashboard intervention in Salford, UK. System usage statistics indicate broad and sustained uptake of the intervention. The use of systems that provide regularly updated audit information may be an important contributor towards medication safety in primary care.
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Content ArticleThe NHS has opened 81 long COVID assessment clinics across England and invested more than £50m in research to help improve understanding of the condition, from diagnosis and treatment to rehabilitation and recovery. In Scotland and Wales, Long Covid is primarily being managed in primary care through GPs. However, access to help has been patchy. Geraint Jones, advanced pharmacist specialising in HIV and homecare at Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board in Wales, is frustrated by the lack of a clear pathway for managing Long Covid and has struggled to access services in Wales. In Yorkshire, Rani Khatib — a consultant cardiology pharmacist at Leeds General Infirmary — is waiting for a clinic dedicated to long COVID to be set up in his local area. In the meantime, he has received physiotherapy support through the local pulmonary rehabilitation team, as well as a 12-week Covid-19 rehabilitation programme provided through the charity arm of Nuffield Health. Karen Cook, a clinical services manager for a private hospital chain, has found support from others with Long Covid through Facebook groups, some of which have swelled to tens of thousands of members. She says other professional groups, such as physiotherapists and occupational therapists, have developed effective Long Covid support networks. She would like to see something similar for pharmacists. The Royal Pharmaceutical Society is developing support alerts, blogs and professional guidance relating to Long COVID, and has a support line available for one-to-one discussion and support.
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Considering Valproate video (February 2022)
Patient-Safety-Learning posted an article in Medication
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News ArticleDoctors have criticised new health secretary Therese Coffey over reports that pharmacists will be allowed to prescribe antibiotics without the approval of a doctor. According to The Times, Ms Coffey’s “Plan for Patients” will give pharmacists the power to prescribe certain drugs, such as contraception, without a prescription in an effort to reduce the need for GP appointments and tackle waiting lists. Responding to reports of the plans, Rachel Clarke, an NHS palliative care doctor and writer, wrote on Twitter: “This is staggeringly irresponsible of Therese Coffey and will cause so much more harm than good. “Doctors do not – unlike Coffey – dish out spare antibiotics to our family and friends because we’re painfully aware of the harms of antibiotic resistance. Utter recklessness.” Stephen Baker, a professor at Cambridge University and an expert in molecular microbiology and antimicrobial resistance, branded the health secretary’s plans “moronic”. He told the newspaper that the more antibiotics were used “the more likely we are to get drug-resistant organisms”. He added that it was “nuts” to consider widening access to drugs, adding that resistance against antibiotics is “clearly one of the biggest problems humanity is facing in respect of infectious disease at the moment”. Read full story Source: The Independent, 17 October 2022
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News ArticleMany pharmacies and physicians are forced to deny patients access to drugs, such as methotrexate, that can be used to help induce an abortion A few weeks after the supreme court’s 24 June decision to overturn the nationwide abortion rights established by Roe v Wade, the pharmacy chain Walgreens sent Annie England Noblin a message, informing her that her monthly prescription of methotrexate was held up. Noblin, a 40-year-old college instructor in rural Missouri, never had trouble getting her monthly prescription of methotrexate for her rheumatoid arthritis. So she went to her local Walgreens to figure out why, standing in line with other customers as she waited for an explanation. When it was finally her turn, a pharmacist informed Noblin – in front of the other customers behind her – that she could not release the medication until she received confirmation from Noblin’s doctor that Noblin would not use it to have an abortion. Since the supreme court’s elimination of federal abortion rights, many states have been enacting laws which highly restrict access to abortion, affecting not only pregnant women but also other patients as well as healthcare providers. As a result, many pharmacies and physicians have been forced to deny and delay patients’ access to essential medications – such as methotrexate – that can be used to help induce an abortion. Noblin is one of the 5 million methotrexate users across the US and one of the country’s many autoimmune patients. Although she was eventually given her prescription, Noblin and other patients are now forced to grapple both with a monthly invasion of privacy at pharmacies that ask them about their reproductive choices as well as the possibility of being wholly denied the medication in the future due to restrictive laws. Read full story Source: The Guardian, 26 September 2022
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Webinar series 2022: Insulin safety in community pharmacy
Patient-Safety-Learning posted a calendar event in Community Calendar
untilPharmacy Forum NI and the DoH Strategic Planning & Performance Group (SPPG) have created a three-part webinar series entitled, ‘A systematic Approach to Insulin Safety in Community Pharmacy’. The first webinar in the series will take place on Wednesday 21 September 2022 at 7-9pm via Zoom and will focus on an introduction to human factors, concepts & tools, and their relevance to patient/medication safety and the wellbeing of the pharmacy team. Event programme and registration Who should attend? These events are targeted at all members of the community pharmacy team who play a part in the safe supply of medicines to patients, namely: pharmacists and foundation trainee pharmacists pharmacy technicians and assistants owners and superintendents medicines safety leads Guest speakers We are delighted to partner with Professor Paul Bowie and Dr Helen Vosper for the three-part event series. Professor Paul Bowie is a Safety Scientist, Medical Educator and Chartered Ergonomist and Human Factors specialist. He has over 25 years’ experience in a range of quality and safety leadership and advisory roles in healthcare, medical defence, military medicine and academia. He gained his doctorate in significant event analysis from the University of Glasgow in 2004 and has published over 150 papers on healthcare quality and safety in international peer-reviewed journals and co-edited a book on safety and improvement. Paul is also Honorary Professor and a PhD supervisor/examiner in the Institute of Health and Wellbeing at the University of Glasgow and a Visiting Professor at Queen’s University, Kingston, Canada. He is Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and the Royal College of General Practitioners, and a Chartered Member of the UK Institute of Ergonomics and Human Factors where he is the patient safety lead of the healthcare specialist interest group Dr Helen Vosper is a chartered ergonomist and graduate of the Loughborough Human Factors Masters Programme and an academic with 15 years’ experience of teaching Human Factors to healthcare students and professionals, including pharmacy students and pharmacists. She is currently the lead for Patient Safety in the School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition at the University of Aberdeen. Helen also has a part-time role as a Senior Investigation Science Educator at the Healthcare Safety Investigation Branch and is a scientific adviser in Human Factors and Patient Safety to NHS Education for Scotland.
