Communities are suffering as pharmacies have been left to crumble
5 min read
Imagine being able to drop into a high street clinic to get health advice or treatment from a healthcare professional with years of training and experience – no appointment necessary.
They could deal with minor ailments for you and your children, vaccinations, HRT, high blood pressure, chest infections, contraception; your regular medicines; all manner of everyday health concerns, all within walking distance.
They could help you with unhealthy aspects of your lifestyle such as stopping smoking, offer advice on healthy eating, weight loss, exercise and wellbeing.
It sounds implausible in these days of the 8am dash to the phone to get a GP appointment, long waits in A&E, no dental appointments and longer waits for hospital clinics.
But it actually does exist, it’s called a community pharmacy.
A pharmacy is not just a place to pick up prescriptions, but a healthcare hub where there is deep clinical expertise, right at the heart of every community but for how much longer?
The reality is that we’re facing up to a very difficult legacy. Much of the pharmacy network has been left to crumble. Hobbled by real terms cuts of up to 40 per cent over the past decade, around 1,250 pharmacies have closed their doors in England since 2014. There have also been closures in Wales and Northern Ireland. Those pharmacies that remain have had to cut back opening hours and the services they can offer.
I have always been encouraged that the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, recognises the immense value that community pharmacies bring to the health system and the NHS 10 year plan is an opportunity to realise that high street health potential.
As someone who worked as a community pharmacist for nearly two decades before I entered Parliament, I know what a close connection they have with our communities. I also know what a dynamic and entrepreneurial force they can be within our health service offering a level of value for taxpayer money not often seen.
I’ve no doubt that when we talk about funding and reform in the NHS and when we talk about bringing care closer to our communities, that is exactly what my old colleagues in community pharmacies want to do.
There is a great strength of feeling from community pharmacies about their current financial position – in few other places is the legacy of the past decade so stark.
The truth is that family run independent pharmacies have been pushed to the edge and even larger chains are struggling despite economies of scale. Frequently I’ve heard stories of pharmacists having to go to extreme lengths to keep open a pharmacy that was often founded by their parents or grandparents. They report working all hours, spending huge amounts of time trying to source medicines that are in short supply.
When we talk about bringing care closer to our communities, that is exactly what my old colleagues in community pharmacies want to do
While owners are moving heaven and earth to keep their independent pharmacies open, the big chains have retrenched and pulled out of hundreds of high streets. It’s hard to blame them – the NHS just can’t expect pharmacies to carry on taking all the risks and then work at a loss with some medicines costing more than the amount reimbursed.
What other clinicians would be asked to put their hands into their own pockets to provide healthcare services?
As we have a new government, we have a great opportunity to do things differently than the last, halt the closures in our constituencies and realise the transformative potential of community pharmacy.
I know that investing in our community pharmacies is not the solution to all of the problems facing our wider health system, but it will help with many of those problems. It has already been demonstrated to be popular and provide value for money.
A well-funded pharmacy system, with increased responsibilities, would be an affordable way of unlocking capacity in the health system, at pace.
Let’s support every healthcare professional in the community to work to the full extent of their professional capacity – and make more and better use of the pharmacy, nursing and GP network to give a better service to patients and take the heat from hard-pressed hospitals. The role of community pharmacy is ripe for change as part of the 10-year plan for the NHS to redefine the professional boundaries in a way that will free up capacity in the rest of the network.
It’s not hard to find stories of pharmacists seeing their patients and spotting dangerous medical conditions – heart attacks, sepsis, mental health problems, elderly or vulnerable people no longer able to cope. I’ve done it myself. And there are many, many people who owe their lives, or at least their good health, to a pharmacist referring them for diagnosis or treatment. That’s what being the front door of healthcare looks like.
In the end it’s patients, communities, mums and dads and vulnerable older people who will lose out if more pharmacies close. We should be respecting our community pharmacies, listening to their valuable voices and giving them fair funding to carry on their vital work on the health service frontline.
Sadik Al-Hassan is the MP for North Somerset and a former community pharmacist
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