Pharmacy automation

Machines cannot replace pharmacists

Independent community pharmacy contractor Mark Burdon explains what links pharmacy, automation and Charles Dickens.…

Hub and spoke can be the future, says Boots chief pharmacist

Speaking at the RPS annual conference, Marc Donovan said pharmacy needs to change and must embrace new technology and services.…

Fully exploit the potentials of hub-and-spoke dispensing and e-prescribing

I welcome the reports from your journals relating to hub-and-spoke dispensing ( The Pharmaceutical Journal 2016;296:205) and electronic prescribing ( Clinical Pharmacist 2016;8:144) as valuable contributions to transformation of distribution and supply of medicines and the be…

Community pharmacy plans must be reconsidered in light of Ridge’s inaccurate claims

Reports that the chief pharmaceutical officer in England made inaccurate claims to the All-Party Pharmacy Group regarding dispensing error rates and hub-and-spoke dispensing is deeply worrying. The General Pharmaceutical Council’s (GPhC) ‘Standards of conduct, ethics and performance&rsqu…

Inaccurate claims about dispensing error rates are unacceptable

The news that Keith Ridge, chief pharmaceutical officer for England, has admitted that he misled the All-Party Pharmacy Group (APPG) by overstating the accuracy of currently available technology driven dispensing systems is shocking. Ridge cited evidence from literature that the error rate in …

Government rethinks hub and spoke dispensing proposals

The government is to reconsider its plans for hub and spoke dispensing, according to health minister Alastair Burt.…

Chief pharmaceutical officer admits he misled MPs over hub and spoke dispensing

England’s chief pharmaceutical officer Keith Ridge has admitted that data he gave to an All-Party Pharmacy Group (APPG) inquiry suggesting that hub and spoke dispensing is ‘much safer’ than traditional dispensing was inaccurate.…

Automated hub-and-spoke dispensing will create opportunities for greater patient contact; unless it’s all about the bottom line

Hub-and-spoke dispensing has the potential to change community pharmacy for the better but questions remain.…

Community pharmacists have ‘professional obligation’ to adopt automated dispensing, says chief pharmaceutical officer

Community pharmacists have a professional obligation to adopt automated dispensing processes, according to England’s chief pharmaceutical officer Keith Ridge.…

Petition against community pharmacy cuts close to 13,000 signatures

The government has responded to an online petition protesting against the proposed cuts to England’s community pharmacy contract. By 26 January 2016, the petition had attracted 12,940 signatures.…