Pharmacists who work for primary care groups and trusts believe that the ability to negotiate is the most important requirement for their jobs. A survey of primary care pharmacists carried out by Pharmacy Management, which is to be published shortly, found that 86 per cent of respondents said that they needed negotiating skills for their work. Critical evaluation, health economics and external communication skills were seen to be the next most important.
Most respondents (65 per cent) said that their PCG or PCT did not have a local formulary. A small proportion (14 per cent) operated formularies for all therapeutic groups. The same number had formularies for specific therapeutic categories. The most common reason given for paying attention to particular therapeutic categories was the prevalence of inappropriate prescribing, closely followed by treatment cost. Nearly a third of the formularies had been drawn up in conjunction with local hospitals. A small proportion of hospitals, PCGs and PCTs had agreed shared-care protocols.
Questionnaires were sent to 567 pharmacists known to be giving prescribing advice to general medical practices. A response rate of 25.5 per cent was achieved.