The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 269 No 7211 p215-218
17 August 2002

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Letters to the Editor

Pharmacy in Wales

The wait for the pharmacy strategy may be justified

From Mr A. R. Willson, MRPharmS

I returned from two weeks' holiday abroad to read the debate stimulated by your editorial of 27 July about the long-awaited plans for pharmacy in Wales (p120).

A. Robinson et al (PJ, 3 August, p157) and Colin Ranshaw and V'Iain Fenton-May (PJ, 10 August, p190) have helpfully explained in their responses the importance of devolution and the opportunities it presents for Wales. I do not agree with them, however, that the timing of events in the other home countries has no relevance to the Welsh process.

Any perception that Wales is lagging behind may damage our ability to recruit and retain staff within a UK labour market. It might also affect our ability to influence and lead technological and service developments by IT suppliers and pharmacy multiples who have a UK-wide focus. Pharmacists in Wales have experienced longer delays than elsewhere in the UK in resolving prescription pricing difficulties.

It is also the case that England-Wales differences in the timescales for issuing guidance predate the creation of the Welsh Assembly.

It would not be surprising, therefore, if some pharmacists in Wales are worried about possible delays with such a vital document as the Welsh pharmacy plan.

While we await a document in September, it will have been a comfort to many that your editorial stimulated such a confident endorsement of the process from so influential a group as Ms Robinson and colleagues. The timescale will indeed have been justified if the strategy puts Welsh pharmacy in a strong position relative to the rest of the UK. I hope that, when the document is published, The Journal will devote space to judge it on its true merits.

Alan Willson
Swansea,
West Glamorgan

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