PJ, November 2015, Vol 295, No 7883

Ways to boost pharmacy practice research

Although interest in pharmacy practice research is growing, there is plenty that needs to be done to boost engagement and participation.…

NHS drug spending rises by 8% to £15.5bn in England

The costs of NHS medicines prescribed in hospital and in the community in England rose by 7.8% between 2013–2014 and 2014–2015. …

UK pharmacy regulator concerned by plans for EU-wide professional registration

The pharmacy regulator has expressed “grave concerns” about the introduction of the European Professional Card being introduced in January 2016.…

Activities during Ask Your Pharmacist Week

We have just seen the end of another successful Ask Your Pharmacist Week on 9–15 November 2015 and would like to share some of the activities that were happening around the UK with readers. Pharmacists and pharmacy representatives across the country took advantage of this platform for ra…

Antibiotic prescriptions in England fall after 2012 peak

Antibiotic prescribing by GPs in England has fallen by 5.6% since 2012 following national efforts to slow the spread of bacterial resistance.…

Tooth eruption and teething in children

Identifying symptoms associated with primary tooth eruption, the available treatments and best practice for management.…

Clarification on the PrescQIPP guidance for gluten-free foods

In response to the comment piece written by Tony Cartwright, ‘NHS gluten-free food controversy does no favours for coeliacs’ ( The Pharmaceutical Journal 2015;295:324), we would like to point out some inaccuracies on the statements around the PrescQIPP guidance on gluten-free…

NHS England doubles funding for GP practice pharmacist pilot

NHS England has announced that it is doubling the size of the pilot that will see pharmacists employed directly in GP practices following an “overwhelmingly positive response” from surgeries.…

Coeliac disease: getting the measure of new drug treatments

As more people are being diagnosed with coeliac disease, the first drug treatments are entering clinical trials, but success is proving difficult to measure.…

Pharmacists must support their junior doctor colleagues

Junior doctors deserve support during this difficult period in their careers.…