Impact on pharmacy of GPs in Scotland opting out of 24-hour care highlighted
Out-of-hours services in Scotland are under pressure and new ways of
working need to be found. This is the conclusion of a report published
this week by Audit Scotland (PDF 1.8MB).
The report, which examined the impact of allowing GP practices to opt
out of providing 24-hour care, states that one effect is more demand
for community pharmacy services at weekends and bank holidays.
It recommends: “The Scottish Executive Health Department should
review the impact of the changes to out-of-hours care on other services,
specifically pharmacy, accident and emergency, and the ambulance service,
to inform planning around how out-of-hours services develop in the future.”
The
report also includes a check-list for NHS boards to assess their out-of-hours
services. One criterion is to monitor the effect of out-of-hours services
on community pharmacy.
Overall, Audit Scotland says that over 95 per cent of GP practices have
opted out of out-of-hours services. It found that this has been a major
challenge for NHS boards, particularly in financial terms. The report
notes that although this had created an opportunity to change the way
out-of-hours services are delivered, most boards had focused instead
on taking over service provision. It says that the impact on patient
care is unclear.
“New ways of working are required as there is a significant risk
that current models of service delivery are not sustainable in the long
term.
The SEHD and NHS boards must adopt a much greater focus and commitment
to investment in, and planning for, extended roles for health professionals
and joint working,” the report concludes. |
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Pharmaceutical Journal
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