Changes in the healthcare system could present a chance for pharmacists to handle more general practice duties, experts claim.
Research from the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) found that GP recruitment challenges as well as the workload transition from hospitals to the community could allow pharmacists to take on more roles.
By working more closely with GPs, pharmacists could manage long-term conditions such as asthma more effectively, PSNC claimed.
The report stated: “On the face of it, greater general practice provision of services may not be welcomed by community pharmacy contractors eager to provide more services to the local population; however it may in fact present an opportunity for community pharmacy.
“This development could prompt the shift of existing workload within the general practice to community pharmacy, where there is a need to create capacity in general practices to allow the provision of new services previously provided by secondary care.”
A spokesperson from Rowlands Pharmacy said: “We should both utilise and appreciate the full skillsets of our country’s pharmacists, as well as encourage and support them during this tough time.
“By enlisting the assistance of GPs and getting them to work more closely together, medical professionals can manage long-term conditions more effectively – one individual case at a time, such as asthma – which will then boost both GPs’ and pharmacists’ confidence to treat patients more competently.”
