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Letters to the Editor
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Minor ailment scheme
Pharmacists have role as clinical practitioners
From Mr A. I. Mackinnon, MRPharmS
I have followed with interest the letters responding to Nadim
Ali’s
letter (PJ, 8 March 2008, p273) headed “medicines shopping
list” and
have been encouraged by many of the responses.
I would like to emphasise the original vision and policy intention behind the
introduction of the minor ailment service (MAS) in Scotland. This core pharmaceutical
care service was introduced to support the provision of direct pharmaceutical
care on the NHS by community pharmacists to members of the public presenting
with common illnesses and who are exempt from paying prescription charges.
Improving access to consultations, advice and medicines for common illnesses
was one of the key objectives.
The vision for this service has a number of important elements — namely,
improving access to NHS services, highlighting community pharmacy as a first
port of call for common illnesses, helping to address health inequalities and
allowing community pharmacists to prescribe for minor ailments.
The focus of the service is the consultation itself, allowing the community
pharmacist to give advice, treat if appropriate or refer the patient to another
practitioner where required.
The MAS is an element of a much larger vision which, if we deliver, will position
community pharmacists as clinical practitioners, as public health practitioners
and as prescribers. Positioning the patient at the centre of the pharmacy contract
and delivering the pharmaceutical care the patient requires will allow community
pharmacists to play an important role in improving the health of Scotland’s
people and then just maybe the true value of community pharmacy will be recognised
by Government and rewarded and remunerated appropriately.
The MAS is not about fulfilling a medicines shopping list. It is about taking
a step into pharmacy’s future and grasping an opportunity. It is about
using our expertise
and clinical skills to improve patient care and reduce health inequalities
and maybe, too, there is something in there about proving our worth.
The benefits of this core service are well recognised and, over the coming
months, Community Pharmacy Scotland will explore the implications and opportunities
for the service afforded by the phased abolition of prescription charges in
Scotland.
Alex Mackinnon
Head of Corporate Affairs,
Community Pharmacy Scotland
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The
Pharmaceutical Journal