Some of you may know that in addition to running PL-UK I also locum 1-2 days a week, usually in one of Her Majesty’s Prisons. In prison service pharmacy you have access to patients medical records and can therefore fully support other members of the healthcare team and give patients effective advice.
It came as a shock then when on Wednesday, I volunteered to help out in a busy community pharmacy whose pharmacy manager was ill. The pharmacy is very busy dispensing around 10,000 items a month with lots of walk in business. To suddenly not have access to patients records felt like someone had cut off my right arm. All questions about dosages and queries on prescribing had to be made via the doctors receptionist on one occasion via a patients mother who called her daughter to confirm a dose change! What century are we living in in community pharmacy? Pharmacists will never realise their full clinical potential until they have access to patients records. In addition, the NHS will never benefit from the savings pharmacists could generate without this access.
Doctors and nurses in the NHS and prison service are happy for pharmacists to have access to this information as they see them as fellow clinicians. So what’s the problem for community pharmacy?
It’s quite clear that GP’s don’t community pharmacists in the same way as their secondary care colleagues and I fear the continued expansion of the multiples means they never will. I’m pretty sure that if the pharmacy market in the UK had remained dominated by independent contractors we would have had patient record access by now.
Whether we like it or not, and this is not meant to be disrespectful to individual pharmacists, doctors will never agree to allow access to confidential medical information to large, as they see it, commercial organisations like the big supermarkets. Traditionally pharmacy chains, maybe, but the thought of a persons medical history being stored on loyalty card looms large in the thoughts of medics.
However they may be a way around this that would allow patients to benefit from better pharmaceutical care and pharmacists to support patients and other clinicians much more effectively – an NHS contract for pharmacists.
Just think of it, the NHS could benefit from the business expertise of the multiples and the pharmacist would have complete professional freedom without worrying about commercial priorities or making this Christmas the best Christmas ever! Oh, I can still hear it now from my Boots days!
So in this time of unprecedented change for the NHS, we need our leaders to start thinking outside the box. I know that the PDA are pushing for individual contracts for pharmacists, maybe not in quite the style I envisage, but it’s a start.
What are your thoughts?
Shaun
This is a request for all locum pharmacists and locum pharmacy technicians working in and around London.
The NHS in London is looking at locum supply across all sectors at present with an aim to reducing costs. PL-UK are tendering to supply to London for the first time and I believe we are in with a good chance as our overheads are lower that London based company and our specialisation in pharmacy means that we are able to support pharmacy directors more effectively than the bigger, more generalist healthcare suppliers.
Let me start by staying that it is our intention to take most of the cost saving pain ourselves. We have submitted figures nationally that reduce our fees by 35%. To enable us to do this we obviousy need to increase the number of locum we supply and that is where we need your help.
I need to gather information on locum pharmacists and locum pharmacy technicians who do or can work in London. If you could email me before the end of the week with the requested information below I’d be very grateful:
Name
Pharmacist or pharmacy tecnician
Previous experience
Do you hold a “fit to practice” declaration from occupational health?
Do you hold an enhanced CRB clearance?
Have you completed al mandatory training required by the NHS?
If all this information is held in a CV, fantastic! Simply email shaun@pluk.co.uk. If the answer is no to any of the questions above don’t worry simply email me and we can arrange for the training/clearances to be obtained.
New Registrations – the end of the month will see an influx of pharmacists onto the RPSGB register and PL-UK are here to help all the one’s who are looking to locum post-registration. PL-UK know how to look after newly qualifieds as Shaun has been one himself (although a while ago now!) and the last seven years has enabled us to build up expertise in supporting pharmacists who are new to the register. We won’t throw you in the deep end, we’ll make sure you work in branches with good support, who pay on time and who we would be happy to work with ourselves.
To talk to a member of the PL-UK prior to getting your RPSGB registration number please call 0800 8818844 from a land line or 0333 123 3344 from a mobile and ask to speak to Linda or Lynne
We are always on the look-out for hospital locum pharmacists to join our merry band and at present we have a number of long term placements available for locum pharmacists with the right experience. We have negotiated market leading pay rates for our locums so if you are a locum with hospital experience or know someone who is, please point them in our direction.
I’m available 24/7 on 07971187921
Shaun
We are in need of more experienced hospital pharmacists on our books. We have vacancies in hospital across the UK including a three month placement in County Durham.
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Just a quick post to remind all pharmacist that they need to renew their GPhC registration by the 31st October. So you still have a month to pay but if you are anything like me, if you don’t do it now, there’s a chance you’ll forget!
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