News summary
LPC Conference 2002
PSNC promises to treat conference resolutions more seriously than in past
Local pharmaceutical committees have been given an undertaking
that the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee will take resolutions
passed at the LPC representatives' conference more seriously than LPC
representatives believe has been the case in the past...[more]
South London LPC set to deliver 10,000 letters
to Number 10 A pharmacy awareness week organised by Lambeth
Southwark and Lewisham local pharmaceutical committee has been successful,
according to its organisers...[more]
More money for medicines services Over
£8m has been pledged by the Government for 2002–03 to support the
better use of medicines...[more]
Calderdale sets out pharmacy strategy Calderdale
and Kirklees Health Authority has produced a strategy document spelling
out local development opportunities for community pharmacy stemming from
the pharmacy plan for England and how they could be implemented in its
area...[more]
Sheffield HA sets up pharmacy development funds
Sheffield Health Authority has allocated £300,000 over
three years to develop community pharmacy services...[more]
Pharmacist-led CHD clinic keeps going A
pharmacist-led coronary heart disease (CHD) clinic is to become a permanent
part of a CHD out patients programme at South Durham Health Care Trust...[more]
Homoeopathy ineffective for treating asthma triggered
by dust-mite allergy Homoeopathic immunotherapy is not effective
in the treatment of patients with asthma, new trial results suggest. However,
the relevance of the results has been questioned because the trial did
not tailor treatment to individual patients...[more]
Prescription charge to rise to £6.20 in England
and Scotland The National Health Service prescription charge
is to rise by 10p to £6.20 per item in England and Scotland on 1
April...[more]
More older champions needed Champions
are needed to provide local leadership in implementing the National Service
Framework for Older People, especially in tackling age discrimination
and providing positive patient experiences, Gordon Lishman, director general
of Age Concern said at a conference held by the Department of Health and
the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry in London on 6
March...[more]
Government gives in to pressure over health professions
proposed council Pressure from regulatory bodies has forced
the Government to change its proposals for the Council for the Regulation
of Healthcare Professionals in the NHS Reform and Healthcare Professions
Bill...[more]
Doctors too unwilling to treat high BP Doctors
in primary care do not treat hypertension aggressively because they are
willing to accept an elevated systolic blood pressure in their patients,
say researchers from the United States...[more]
Patients say they would share medical records
with pharmacists Patients are willing to take responsibility
for their own medical records and would be happy to share this information
with pharmacists, according to research carried out for the Doctor Patient
Partnership...[more]
BMA puts forward new care model A
new model for the provision of National Health Service care has been proposed
in a British Medical Association discussion paper...[more]
Expert patient pilots to start this year Training
courses in self-management of chronic illnesses are to be developed and
piloted by 25 primary care groups and trusts in England...[more]
One dose of zolendronic acid per year is effective
An annual infusion of zolendronic acid might be an effective
treatment for postmenopausal osteoporosis, researchers suggest...[more]
NICE issues first of a series of guidelines for
type 2 diabetes People with type 2 diabetes should have an
eye examination and their kidney function tested at least once a year,
according to guidance from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence
published this week...[more]
Views sought over NICE topics' choice The
Department of Health has started consultation on the way that topics are
selected for appraisal by the National Institute for Clinical Excellence...[more]
Tacrolimus may lead to fewer rejections Tacrolimus
(Prograf) is more effective than a microemulsion formulation of ciclosporin
(Neoral) in preventing acute rejection after renal transplantation, a
study published in The Lancet shows...[more]
Relief of eye pain controls migraine Treating
eye pain can control other migraine symptoms, a study suggests...[more]
Rapid detox with naltrexone risky Ultrarapid
opioid detoxification using subcutaneous naltrexone pellets is associated
with great risks, say American researchers...[more]
Uprima with nitrates well tolerated Apomorphine
(Uprima) is well tolerated in men with erectile dysfunction who are taking
nitrates, researchers confirm...[more]
Fewer switches, more PGDs? Supply
of more prescription-only medicines through patient group directions (PGDs)
rather than a push towards deregulation was suggested at an All-Party
Pharmacy Group meeting at Westminster on 5 March...[more]
Abacavir-containing regimens for HIV effective
for treatment of children Regimens that contain abacavir (Ziagen)
are more effective than those containing zidovudine (Retrovir) and lamivudine
(Epivir) in previously untreated children with human immunodeficiency
virus-1, according to researchers from the Paediatric European Network
for Treatment of AIDS...[more]
Awareness week stresses pharmacy's part in NHS
Community pharmacy's place within the National Health Service
in Scotland was highlighted as part of a pharmacy awareness week organised
by Ayrshire and Arran Primary Care Trust. The week ran from 25 February
to 2 March...[more]
Risk of side effects overestimated with qualitative
descriptions Patients given qualitative rather than quantitative
descriptions of side effects overestimate their risk, researchers from
the universities of Reading and Leeds say...[more]
Ending control of entry could cut prices, says
ASDA Medicine prices could fall by up to £420m a year
if control of entry on new pharmacy dispensing contracts were to be removed,
ASDA Stores told the Office of Fair Trading when it gave evidence to its
inquiry on 6 March...[more]
Lloyds pilots check by technicians in three Welsh
stores Lloydspharmacy has successfully piloted a scheme for
accredited checking technicians in stores in Cardiff, Bridgend and Narberth...[more]
Third generation pills case starts A
court case brought by more that 100 women who claim that they suffered
severe adverse reactions to third generation progestogen-containing oral
contraceptives started in the High Court this week...[more]
NPA calls for private PGDs for pharmacists The
Medicines Control Agency has been asked by the National Pharmaceutical
Association to consider allowing pharmacists to use patient group directions
(PGDs) to supply prescription medicines outside National Health Service
arrangements...[more]
Weldricks supports Boots in charging for MDS
dispensing Customers of Doncaster-based Weldricks Pharmacy
will have to pay £3 a week to have prescriptions dispensed in monitored
dosage systems as the company moves in to line with Boots The Chemists
on making charges for this service...[more]
GEHE backs out of Irish takeover GEHE
has pulled out of a deal to buy the Irish 30-pharmacy Unicare chain for
€152.4m (£94m) because of the Irish government's decision to
deregulate pharmacy businesses...[more]
NPA launches locum insurance Indemnity
insurance for locum pharmacists is to be launched by the National Pharmaceutical
Association on 1 April...[more]
LPC Conference 2002
Community pharmacists must build future, locally
and nationally, LPCs told Community pharmacists must build
their own future, Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee chief
executive Sue Sharpe told the 2002 conference of local pharmaceutical
committee representatives on 4 March...[more]
PPA should return switched prescriptions, say
LPCs Prescription forms that the Prescription Pricing Authority
wants to switch from exempt to charge paid designation should be returned
to pharmacies for clarification, the local pharmaceutical committees'
conference decided...[more]
New contract is our most important issue, PSNC
chairman tells guests Developing a new national contract for
community pharmacy is the most important issue facing the profession,
Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee chairman Barry Andrews told
local pharmaceutical committee representatives and their guests at the
PSNC dinner in London on 4 March...[more]
Remuneration should match our workload, LPCs
say Local pharmaceutical committees called on the Government
to give pharmacy contractors remuneration increases in keeping with rising
workloads...[more]
Four new PSNC members elected The
Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee is to have four new members
following this year's election of representatives...[more]
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