The Parliamentary All-Party Pharmacy Group has called on the Government to make emergency hormonal contraception available from community pharmacies without prescription (see panel for the group's recommendations).
In a statement, the group's chairman (Dr Howard Stoate, Lab, Dartford) said on February 28: "Emergency contraception needs to be quickly accessible for women who need it, but it also needs to be supplied in the right setting where expert health advice is always available. At the moment, a woman has to go to her general medical practitioner to get a prescription. That takes too long and can be off-putting. Selling it in corner shops or garages would be completely inappropriate."
Dr Stoate said that the ideal solution would be over the counter supply from community pharmacies.
"It is common sense and it fits in well with the policy objective of developing the professional role of community pharmacists. Better access will also mean fewer unwanted pregnancies," Dr Stoate went on. "The trials in Manchester (PJ, January 8, p44) are proving that it is a sensible step to take. We want to see pharmacy supply rolled out nation-wide as soon as possible."
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EHC recommendations
The five recommendations that the All-Party Pharmacy Group has sent to the Government are:
- Emergency hormonal contraception should be available to women from community pharmacies without the need for a prescription. A group protocol arrangement, such as is being used in the Manchester health action zone trial, is one method of achieving this end, but we are aware of others (P classification or a new pharmacy supply status)
- Community pharmacists supplying EHC should have access to professional support and guidelines so as to ensure that consistent expert advice from the pharmacist is available to those women who want it and that referral to the woman's GP is recommended, if appropriate
- Community pharmacies supplying EHC without a prescription should ensure that a quiet area of the pharmacy is available for consultation purposes and that patient confidentiality is fully respected
- EHC should only be supplied by or under the supervision of a community pharmacist
- Supply of EHC should be a first step towards a wider pharmacy supply initiative, such as is currently being considered by the Department of Health.
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