Over a million Midlands people visit their local pharmacy for advice and treatment on common illnesses such sore throat, sinusitis and more
People across the Midlands are increasingly choosing to visit their local pharmacy for free NHS treatment and advice for common illnesses as trust in pharmacists grows with the service seeing a rapid increase in numbers two years on from its launch.
These community pharmacies have become a trusted way to access NHS care, offering same-day access in many locations across the region, and extended opening hours, including evenings and weekends.
The service, officially called Pharmacy First enables pharmacists to assess, advise and provide treatment for seven common illnesses, helping patients access care quickly and conveniently without needed a GP appointment.
Over the past year alone, pharmacies across the Midlands delivered 625,878 consultations with positive uptake across all seven conditions; sinusitis, sore throat, earache, infected insect bite, impetigo, shingles and urinary tract infections. This is a 54% increase from the first year.
Jackie Buxton, Pharmacy Lead at NHS England Midlands said “Pharmacy First has helped build public trust in the expertise of community pharmacists.
As we mark two years of the service, patients are increasingly confident in visiting their local pharmacy for safe, effective treatment and advice, and the feedback we are seeing across the Midlands shows how valued this service has become.
Feedback from patients using the service is positive with high levels of satisfaction, patients are pleased with faster access to treatment, shorter waiting times, and greater convenience compared to traditional appointment-based services.”
Nottingham mum, Alex visit’s pharmacy for her son’s sore throat which has seen over 200 people for sore throats since the service launched.
Mum Alex, recently took her nine year old son to Carlton Hill Pharmacy, Nottingham for a sore throat. Alex said “We had a great experience seeing the pharmacist for my son’s sore throat. We popped in without an appointment and didn’t have to wait much. The pharmacist took us into a consultation room and after seeing white spots on my son’s tonsils he was prescribed antibiotics.
The pharmacist also recommended pain relief and guidance on how to manage his symptoms. It was absolutely brilliant, really easy and straightforward visiting the pharmacy. The pharmacist was professional and experienced, and it was great being prescribed the antibiotics and getting them from the same place!”
Jasvinder Kaur Lali, Superintendent Pharmacist of eight pharmacies including Carlton Hill Pharmacy said “At Carlton Hill we have seen over 200 patients for sore throats since the service began two years ago, by Amrit Minhas, Lead Pharmacist and Manager at Carlton Hill.
Alex’s son was seen by Amrit. Alex gave us positive feedback about being seen on the same day and said our staff were friendly and she was grateful for the service.
We have seen a tremendous increase in patients coming in for advice and treatment for the seven pharmacy first conditions. It has helped a lot of people and they have been very grateful. People want to be seen, they need medical care and are grateful they can pop into the pharmacy for instant advice.
Pharmacies are pillars of the NHS, we are managing a lot more and delighted to support our community and patients in providing the pharmacy first service. We regularly speak to our patients educating them about the range of services we provide, and just how easy it is to access advice and treatment through pharmacy first.”
How can people access this service
Most community pharmacies across the Midlands now provide this service. People can walk into participating community pharmacies or be referred by NHS 111, GP practices and urgent care services.