The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 268 No 7184 p161-167
9 February 2002

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Medicines management group covering five NHS trusts set up in north Cumbria

A medicines management group encompassing five National Health Service trusts — three primary care trusts, one acute trust and one mental health and learning disabilities trust — has been set up in north Cumbria.

Ken Ball, clinical support services care group manager, North Cumbria Acute Hospitals NHS Trust, explained to The Journal the reasons for setting up the group. "The population base in north Cumbria is quite small so we had to look at a way to perform medicines management effectively," he said. The acute services trust now has a single drug and therapeutics committee that deals with all medicines management issues applicable to secondary care. "If an issue affects primary care, it is given to the medicines management group, which then makes its recommendations," he added.

The group has agreed terms of reference, which have been supported by the boards of each trust and recently held its first three meetings. Members of the group include a prescribing adviser and a pharmaceutical adviser from the primary care trusts, a pharmacist and consultant from the mental health trust and a chief pharmacist and the chairman of the drug and therapeutics committee from the acute services trust. Also included is a medicines information pharmacist and a representative of the local pharmaceutical committee. The group is currently chaired by Iain Grainger a general practitioner from Carlisle.

Mr Ball added: "This represents a huge change in the way medicines are managed in north Cumbria ... to get such a range of pharmacists and clinicians to agree is a good sign for the future and will improve links between primary and secondary care."

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