Oral health tackled by new pharmacy service
A referral card will be given to patients by pharmacists |
Early identification of oral health problems is to be undertaken by community pharmacists in Fife.
A new service to begin within the next month will enable 10 pharmacists
to refer patients they suspect of having a serious oral health problem
to a specialist nurse.
Nicola Carlyle, communications officer at NHS Fife, said that the service
aims to catch oral cancer early, although the term “cancer” will
not be used within the pharmacy service. She stressed that the pharmacist’s
role is in detecting people at high risk of oral cancer — not suggesting
a diagnosis — and then offering fast-track referral.
Pharmacists have received training from NHS Education for Scotland and
will use a flow chart to identify patients who are at high risk of oral
cancer. They will be on the look-out for both warning symptoms and lifestyle
factors. Symptoms pharmacists will be looking out for include persistent
ulcer-type lumps and difficulty in swallowing.
Through the service, pharmacists will provide patients with a credit
card-sized referral card. The patient is asked to telephone the number
on the card and will then be given an appointment within seven days of
the pharmacist’s referral. |
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