PJ, April 2021, Vol 306, No 7948

SNP proposes NHS agency to manufacture its own generic medicines

Ahead of Scotland's parliamentary elections, the Scottish National Party has pledged to set up an NHS National Pharmaceutical Agency.…

Sites offering only AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines asked to cancel bookings with pregnant women

NHS England said patients who are pregnant should be directed to a vaccination site that offers the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine.…

Non-drug therapies better than drugs for symptoms of depression in dementia

A review has found that several non-drug interventions were more effective than usual care in the treatment of depression in people with dementia.…

23 May 1955: Prince Philip becomes the first honorary Fellow of the Pharmaceutical Society

The day that the Duke of Edinburgh accepted an honour from the Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain.…

Risk of rare blood clot up to ten times higher in COVID-19 infection than after vaccination

The risk of cerebral venous thrombosis from COVID-19 infection was found to be eight to ten times higher than the risk from receiving the current COVID-19 vaccines.…

Online pharmacy dispensing volume grows by 45% in 2020, fuelled by COVID-19 pandemic

Exclusive: Distance-selling pharmacies dispensed 42 million items in 2020, an increase on the 29 million items dispensed in 2019.…

Majority of patients being treated for hypertension do not have blood pressure control

Researchers found that factors associated with a lack of blood pressure control in patients with hypertension included older age, higher alcohol use, black ethnicity and obesity.…

The Oxford miracle: making enough COVID-19 vaccine to supply the world

The inside story on how the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine made it from the laboratory into the arms of millions in less than a year.…

Almost 400 candidates withdrew from March 2021 registration assessment

Exclusive: More than twice as many candidates withdrew from the exam, compared with the most recent summer sitting.…

Pharmacy charity given money from COVID-19 appeal to provide counselling to pharmacy staff

Pharmacist Support will use funds from the COVID-19 Healthcare Support Appeal to offer affected healthcare staff six counselling sessions, free of charge.…