Stuart Anderson MP promotes Pharmacy First in South Shropshire
Stuart Anderson MP has thrown his support behind community pharmacists in South Shropshire after meeting with Community Pharmacy England, which represents England's 10,400 community pharmacies.
The Pharmacy First Service launched on 31st January 2024, and has been adopted by 95% of pharmacies. It enables people to receive treatment for seven common minor illnesses, helping to ease pressure on both GPs and hospitals.
Under the scheme, pharmacists can supply prescription-only medicines, including antibiotics and antivirals where clinically appropriate, to treat conditions like earaches and sore throats without the need to visit a GP.
In South Shropshire, Pharmacy First has saved up to 2,467 GP appointments locally. In May, Stuart called on the government to provide dedicated support for community pharmacies in rural areas. It emerged that some 222 had closed their doors in 2024. This is the second highest annual closure rate on record.
Responding to Stuart's campaign, the Care Minister Stephen Kinnock MP stated that the government had agreed to increase funding for community pharmacies to more than £3 billion, the largest uplift in funding in the NHS.
However, Community Pharmacy England Chief Executive Janet Morrison has said that an "intolerable financial squeeze, extreme operational pressures, and medicines supply and pricing issues has left pharmacies fighting for survival."
Stuart has now endorsed Community Pharmacy England's Four Point Plan, which calls on Ministers to invest in operational pressures facing the sector.
It also urges the government to address medicine supply issues which affect vulnerable residents. The Plan urges the government to commit to::
- Deliver a sustainable funding model for community pharmacies.
- Review the medicines supply market with short-term relief measures.
- Investment in community pharmacy's clinical future, building on Pharmacy First.
- Safeguard the pharmacy workforce with recruitment, retention, and return.
This Autumn, two pharmacy services are being expanded to offer better support for people with depression and for women. Stuart has welcomed these services, which he says will enable people to access them closer to where they live.
Stuart Anderson MP said: "Community pharmacies provide essential services for residents in rural areas like South Shropshire, helping people to access medicines and healthcare advice on their doorstep.
"I was delighted to meet Community Pharmacy England in Parliament to find out more about their four-point plan to secure a sustainable future for the more than 10,400 community pharmacies which collectively prescribe over a billion items each year. I welcome their dedicated efforts to ensure that community pharmacies remain embedded in our community.
"However, I am concerned that more than 200 pharmacies closed their doors last year. This is the second-highest annual closure rate on record. I have urged Ministers to adopt the four-point plan, which includes urgent investment in operational pressures facing the sector."
