Community pharmacies in the North East and Yorkshire have provided more than one million patient consultations through Pharmacy First, NHS figures show. Between February 2024 and May this year there were 1,020,000 consultations for the three elements of Pharmacy First –treatment for seven common conditions, minor illnesses, and urgent medicine supply.

Keith Kendall, Regional Senior Pharmacy Integration Lead for NHS North East and Yorkshire, said: “In this region Pharmacy First has supported more than a million people since its introduction. The service is helping people get quick and convenient access to vital services first time without the need to see a GP, with community pharmacy and general practice teams working together to provide care for local communities.

“At this time of year conditions like sunburn, insect bites, sore throats and minor infections don’t need to take up GP appointments or clog up emergency services – community pharmacies are ideally placed to treat them quickly and professionally,” he added.

Pharmacy First enables patients to get treatment and medicines from their local pharmacy for sinusitis, sore throat, earache, infected insect bite, impetigo, shingles, and uncomplicated urinary tract infection, minor illnesses, and urgent medicine supply – without needing to see a GP.

The initiative ties in with the Government’s ambition to bring more care closer to people’s homes, as set out in the 10 Year Health Plan for England, with the NHS prioritising primary care access.

NHS figures show the total number of consultations in North East and Yorkshire between February 2024 and May this year were

• 520,000 consultations for conditions like sinusitis, sore throat, earache, infected insect bites, impetigo, shingles, and uncomplicated urinary tract infections,
• 260,000 minor illness consultations,
• 238,000 urgent medicine supply consultations.

Responding to the latest figures, Pete Horrocks, a pharmacist at Wolsingham Pharmacy in County Durham, said: “Professionally, it’s really rewarding offering this service. We get patients coming in for the seven common conditions and it’s absolutely clear that we’ve been able to see these patients when they need seeing. They’re not being caught up in the system, not being held up having to wait for appointments.

“Most pharmacies will offer a walk-in service, and we’ll see patients at their turn in the queue – the treatments that we can now give on the Pharmacy First service means that patients are getting the right treatments at the right time.”

Pharmacists also see the benefits of the service in terms of satisfied patients.

“In my experience the most common conditions that we see have been sore throats and uncomplicated urinary tract infections, and over the last month I’ve seen a lot of infected insect bites and been able to treat them,” Pete added.

To find your nearest pharmacy go to nhs.uk/service-search/pharmacy/find-a-pharmacy/