England NHS structures

Pharmacy First: are insufficient GP referrals hindering its success?

Despite ambitions to shift care from GPs to community pharmacies, uptake of the Pharmacy First service remains patchy. Here, exclusive GP referral data reveal what’s driving regional variation and what pharmacists say needs to change.…

NHS data show drop in prescribing of dependency-forming medicines

The medicines featured in the NHS Business Services Authority report include gabapentinoids, opioids, benzodiazepines and Z-drugs.…

PJ view: NHS ten-year plan raises more questions than answers

The NHS ten-year plan sets out well-meaning ambitions for prevention, digital innovation and an expanded role for pharmacy — but with limited detail on delivery and funding, concerns remain about how these goals will be achieved.…

Number of adults prescribed ADHD medication rises by a quarter

Data from NHS Business Services Authority show that in 2024/2025, 190,000 adults in England were prescribed medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.…

Pharmacies to offer children’s flu vaccinations from October 2025

The NHS England advanced service will enable community pharmacies to opt in and expand the delivery of vaccines to children too young to be offered them in school.…

Prescribing pharmacists are delivering beyond their pay grade

Why it is time for Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme funding to catch up and match the scope of what prescribing pharmacists deliver in practice.…

Independent review uncovers ‘extreme financial pressures’ on community pharmacy services

The NHS England-commissioned review looked at clinical services provided under the community pharmacy contract for 2019 to 2024.…

Pharmacies to trial test for risk of oesophageal cancer

NHS England said that the “heartburn health check” could help transfer care from hospitals to the community, as part of the NHS ten-year health plan.…

Tackling the NHS drug budget: why we set up a regional collaboration for medicines value

Amid NHS financial pressures, the medicines value programme lead at the North East and North Cumbria Provider Collaborative shares its approach to setting up a strategy that supports sustainable use of medicines.…

NHS ten-year plan should result in faster medicines access, says NICE

Under the ten-year health plan, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence and Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency will work together to speed up medicines approvals.…