Sending patients to the chemist instead of the GP 'unworkable' say campaigners
PLANS to send patients to the pharmacy instead of the GP are unworkable due to government proposals to slash funding for chemists, campaigners say.
Campaigners believe sending patients to pharmacies instead of GPs is unworkable
NHS England yesterday announced a new scheme that will see chemists carry out instant tests on patients with minor ailments and winter bugs to determine if they need antibiotics without having to see a doctor.
Chief executive Simon Stevens described the plans as a “smart innovation”, saying: “Necessity is the mother of invention.”
But campaigners said the scheme was at odds with last month’s announcement by the Department of Health to push ahead with £200million in funding cuts for the pharmacy industry over the next two years.
The campaigners feel that government proposals to slash funding for chemists would hinder the plans
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The decision, which could force thousands of community pharmacies to close with 19,000 jobs lost, is expected to be challenged in court.
There is a flat contradiction, and a sad irony, in what Simon Stevens is saying right now
Ian Strachan, head of the National Pharmacy Association, which has been fighting the cuts, said: “NHS England is bigging up this scheme as a way to reduce pressure on GPs, just days before massive cuts will hit pharmacies across the country and have exactly the opposite effect.
The new scheme that will see chemists carry out instant tests on patients with minor ailments
“There is a flat contradiction, and a sad irony, in what Simon Stevens is saying right now. Schemes such as these are just the tip of the iceberg of the benefits pharmacies can deliver, but sustained investment in local pharmacies is needed to unlock that potential, not funding cuts that undermine it.
“Local pharmacies should be the first port of call for the vast majority of health concerns.”
The Department of Health plans to push ahead with £200million in funding cuts for the pharmacy
Claire Ward, head of Pharmacy Voice, an association of trade bodies representing community pharmacy, said: “These sorts of services are exactly the kind that we want to see community pharmacies providing and that they should be providing but they need the funding to do that.”
NHS England’s plan is intended to cut antibiotic resistance and alleviate pressure on doctors. Every year 1.2 million people visit their GP with minor ailments, such as sore throats, which could easily be treated by chemists, either with antibiotics or advice on how to alleviate the symptoms.