Bids open for pharmacy chlamydia screening pilot
Community pharmacists are being asked to submit bids to pilot services to make chlamydia screening available throughout London and Cornwall, Public Health Minister Melanie Johnson announced this week.
Advertisements inviting expressions of interest appear on p173 of this
week’s Journal and in the Health Service Journal of 10 February.
Successful applicants will receive funding to provide free chlamydia
screening for 16–24 year olds and may also be able to offer treatment,
for example, via patient group directions. Bids will be assessed on ability
to offer clinical quality, accessible facilities and fast turnaround
times, and the use of innovative technologies and processes.
The services will be evaluated over a two-year period and, if it is successful,
the scheme could be rolled out nationally.
“By offering this service in convenient locations on the high street,
it will make it easier for people to call in for a screening test — helping
to speed up the detection and treatment of chlamydia cases,” Ms
Johnson said.
“The advantage of using independent
sector providers, such as pharmacists, is that they are already in position
on the high street to provide NHS quality chlamydia testing,” she
added.
Miriam Armstrong, chief executive of PharmacyHealthLink, said the project
would be significant in determining the future role of community pharmacy
in screening for sexual health infections. She added: “Our evidence
base reports demonstrate that the public is keen to receive more of these
services through community pharmacies.”
Chlamydia testing and treatment services are already offered by some
pharmacies. A scheme for under 25-year-olds offered at two Boots pharmacies
in the Wirral is to be extended to the company’s Crewe pharmacy
from the end of February. The service has been piloted in the Wirral
since April last year. Customers collect a urine-testing kit, take a
sample at home and return it to the pharmacy.
The sample is sent away for testing and the results sent back to the
patient. If the test is positive the patient can return to the pharmacy
and collect a supply of antibiotics supplied via a patient group direction.
Beth Taylor, specialist principal pharmacist, Community Health London/South
is involved in another pilot of testing for and treatment of chlamydial
infections. She said the DoH announcement confirmed the key role that
pharmacists can play in sexual health services. “The success of
our local emergency hormonal contraception service over the past four
years has shown that community pharmacists are already valued by the
public as key providers of sexual health services,” she added.
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