Agnieszka Aneta Moszczyński, Magdalena Makarewicz-Wujec, Małgorzata Kozłowska-Wojciechowska

Community Pharmacy services available in United Kingdom
2019-10-31

Community Pharmacy services available in United Kingdom

It is still impossible to implement pharmaceutical care and its services in Poland, due to lack of legal regulations in place and sources of financial support. The vision created by Hepler and Strand was uccessfully implemented in many countries such as United Kingdom (UK), where planning and implementing more and more clinically advanced services is happening very dynamically. The need for support provided by community pharmacy services is increasing every year. National Health Systems (NHS) aim is to provide as wide as possible care for patients within Primary Care System. Therefore NHS funds and supports pharmacists further education which enables them carrying out more and more advanced clinically tasks. Community Pharmacy Services are divided into 3categories: essential, advanced and local. Every pharmacy can chose the services they want to provide and the decision is based on patients needs in the given area. In July 2019 NHS, Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee and Department of Health and Social Care published „The Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework for 2019/20 to 2023/24: supporting delivery for the NHS Long Term Plan”. This document delivers even more support for development of pharmaceutical care services in UK and acknowledges the potential that community pharmacists have, needed for delivery of clinically advanced pharmaceutical services. The aim of the article is to illustrate what pharmaceutical care services are available in UK, how they are funded and what impact they have on health care system and public health. It has been estimated that in 2015 year alone Community Pharmacy Services saved NHS over 3 bilion pounds and further investments have been predicted. Community Pharmacy plays an important role in prevention and maintaining public health in UK. As proven in UK, pharmaceutical care implemented in systematic way, practiced with passion in competent and responsible manner can create an opportunity for pharmacists to achieve professional fulfilment.

Keywords: pharmaceutical care, patient centred care, community pharmacy services, role of community pharmacy in healthcare system.

© Farm Pol, 2019, 75 (10): 542–548