The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 275 No 7368 p360
24 September 2005

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NHS 24 recruits pharmacists

NHS 24, the Scottish telephone advice service, has recruited 12 part-time pharmacists as front-line staff to manage its out-of-hours medicines-related enquiries after an audit showed that one in three calls had a noticeable pharmaceutical element.

A pilot study using pharmacy contractors and conducted over six months showed that pharmacists added value when answering medicines-related or access to medicines enquiries.

Pharmacists recruited to NHS 24 are required to undertake 55 hours of face-to-face training over four weeks. The training covers accountability, system navigation and out-of-hours operations in Scotland.

Harry McQuillan, national pharmaceutical adviser to NHS 24, told The Journal that NHS 24 is looking for six to eight more weekend-only pharmacy advisers to achieve a full complement of staff and bring pharmacist cover up to 160 hours per week.