London oral contraception PGD plans are advanced
Plans are already well advanced to make oral contraception available from community pharmacies under a patient group direction (PGD) in the Lambeth and Southwark areas of London from April next year (2008).
The news comes just one week after health minister Lord Darzi announced
in the House of Lords that such
schemes would be piloted in different parts of England (PJ, 15 December 2007, p669). Lord Darzi’s
announcement has been welcomed by pharmacy organisations (see Panel below).
Access to oral contraception
is important to prevent unwanted pregnancies
Alastair Buxton, head of NHS services at the Pharmaceutical
Services Negotiating Committee, said: “Access to oral contraception
is an important measure to prevent unwanted pregnancies and the
PSNC is supportive of the move by the Department of Health to use
the community pharmacy network to provide women with a further
source of support.
“We have been discussing this issue, and the wider use of
community pharmacies to provide sexual health services, such as
chlamydia
screening, over the past year. Additionally, emergency hormonal
contraception has been successfully supplied in community pharmacies
for many years and pharmacists have shown that they are capable
of adapting well to new service demands.
“Both patients and the
NHS will want assurances that pharmacists have the required knowledge
and skills appropriate for the delivery of this service and this
will be a key part of forthcoming discussions with the department.”
Mr Buxton added that it was important that the NHS should examine
as many alternative methods as possible of providing both convenient
and cost effective services beyond traditional methods of delivery.
David Pruce, director of practice and quality improvement at the
Royal Pharmaceutical Society, said: “Pharmacists are experts
in medicines and have a track record of supplying medicines, such
as emergency hormonal contraception, via PGDs and also over the
counter. As such, they have the clinical skills and expertise that
will help them provide information and advice to women to ensure
the appropriate use of oral contraception.” |
Work on the Lambeth
and Southwark scheme started last March 2007. The plan is to add a regular
contraception service to the sexual health services
that are already being offered by community pharmacies in the area as
locally commissioned enhanced services. These include chlamydia testing
and treatment, the operation of a condom card for young people under
25 years of age and provision of emergency contraception.
More than 4,000 — mainly
young — women, have already visited community pharmacies in the
area in the past year to obtain emergency hormonal contraception under
a PGD.
Women taking advantage of the proposed new service, which is supported
by Southwark and Lambeth primary care trusts and the Lambeth and Southwark
Modernisation Initiative (funded by Guy’s and St Thomas’ Charity),
will consult participating pharmacists who will work under a protocol
that has already been drawn up
by the project group.
If oral contraception is the most appropriate method
for any individual, it will be provided under a PGD. If not, she will
be referred to an alternatioove suitable service.
Jo Holmes, the Modernisation Initiative’s service
improvement lead for sexual health, said: “We have initiated this
pilot and are seeking to develop a service that meets residents’ needs.
An important part of the project is ensuring we have good clinical governance
and
a comprehensive training programme to support the pharmacists who will
be delivering the service.
“We have developed the patient pathway and
an outline training programme. We are currently working on the clinical
governance arrangements and obtaining local service user views.”
Dorset PCT’s EHC card could be used discreetly |
EHC
card Dorset PCT has produced a credit card-sized card to help
young women request emergency hormonal contraception from pharmacies
under
a patient group
direction.
PCT health programme adviser Keith Williams said that
teenage girls could be daunted by the prospect of going into a pharmacy
to explain that they
had had unprotected intercourse.
“The card can be discreetly passed over
the counter with a
request to ‘speak to someone about this, please’, ” he
said.
The card is to be piloted in Weymouth and Portland,
where the teenage pregnancy rate is 49 per 1,000, compared with a
national average of 42 per
1,000. If the
card is judged to be a success, its use will be extended to the whole of
Dorset. |
|
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