Collaborative Working Project between The National Pharmacy Association, Gen X Media Ltd (trading as Pharmacy in Practice) and Pfizer Ltd
Supporting Community Pharmacy to be the “Front Door of Healthcare”
Background
Earlier this year, NHS England (NHSE) and the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) announced plans to expand the role of community pharmacy to deliver additional health services to patients with the aim of alleviating pressure on the NHS as it begins to resume pre-pandemic services. This allows for more choice in how care and treatments are accessed.
The NHS Long Term Plan also sets out how patients and the public will increasingly rely on clinical care provided by community pharmacy to support delivery of the commitments from the plan, which Pfizer Ltd consider a priority and has been a focus for ongoing planning for some time.
Pfizer Ltd has now entered into a collaborative working agreement with The National Pharmacy Association and Gen X Media Ltd (trading as Pharmacy in Practice) to deliver support for the development of a robust clinical network of services in the pharmacy ecosystem, that supports the NHS to deliver on its commitments laid out in the NHS Long Term Plan. This will integrate local communities and support local health needs by providing additional educational and training materials to Pharmacists on a range of clinical services, including on vaccination techniques, with the aim of relieving pressure on the NHS. The collaboration will also look to provide awareness and education materials to the public on the range of services being offered by Community Pharmacy, advocating for better access to clinical information and treatment, which will allow for informed choice at a local level.
Project
The overall aim of Pfizer Ltd working in partnership with The National Pharmacy Association and Gen X Media (trading as Pharmacy in Practice) is to develop a range of training and educational materials, including on vaccination techniques, for pharmacists and their staff, to enable them to upskill so they can provide clinical services and treatments to patients that adhere to national guidelines. This will help optimise best practice within community pharmacy and therefore bring benefits to patients and pharmacy consumers. We will commence this work through vaccination services in the first instance and then look to expand to wider clinical services thereafter.
All three parties will be pooling resources and contributing to a range of services to ensure the success of this project, including the development of clinical training materials, within the requirements of national guidance.
Pfizer will be providing a financial contribution to this collaborative working project, as well as working closely with both organisations by providing input and strategic advice into the development of clinical training and educational materials that align to national guidance.
Benefits
Benefits to patients and thier care
- Improved awareness of additional medicines/vaccines and clinical services via materials made available through their local community pharmacy
- Improved choice to a range of treatments and clinical advice, including on vaccines through their community pharmacy
- Improved access to medicines/vaccines and clinical advice through materials made available via their community pharmacy
Benefits to the NHS
- Materials being developed for community pharmacists will align with national guidance and commitments made in the NHS Long Term Plan that aims to support GP and hospital services to focus on their post-pandemic recovery plans in their efforts to tackle patient backlogs
- Materials will promote the enhancement of best practice, with the aim of alleviating pressures on the health and care system and offering solutions to those health and care services that can more easily be delivered through community pharmacy
Benefits to Pfizer
- Increased understanding of how we improve patient access to our medicines/vaccines through community pharmacy
- Developing innovative educational and patient materials will enhance Pfizer’s reputation and support community pharmacy offer solutions, areas of best practice, and introduce innovative ways of working.
Proposed term of collaborative working project
Planned Start Date of Project: November 2023
Planned End Date of Project: November 2024