Society, law and politics

What does the assisted dying legislation mean for pharmacy?

The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill still has a long way to go before becoming law and pharmacy organisations have unresolved questions about what it might mean for pharmacy practice.…

Reframe project: ensuring diverse images for healthcare 

Many healthcare images do not represent the communities we serve. Medical conditions can look different depending on a person’s skin tone. Generally, in healthcare resources, there are very few pictures of people with different skin tones. An audit of the NHS Health A to Z website found that out o…

A 2.8% pay uplift recommendation reflects a tough economy for everyone

In this month’s health policy column, Andy Cowper warns that high gilts and low growth may mean pay parsimony for pharmacists, but questions whether more NHS strikes would have public backing.…

Evaluation report of community pharmacy clinical services delayed until spring 2025, says NHS England

Exclusive: NHS England said the delay is to avoid releasing an incomplete report, which could infer inaccurate suggestions relating to the pharmacy sector and damage patient confidence.…

Your views on the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s royal college proposals

In this episode of The PJ Pod, we hear from the executive team at the Royal Pharmaceutical Society about its proposals to become a royal college, and from members with their opinions on the plans.…

Seven in ten pharmacy owners are concerned financial pressures will affect patient safety this winter

More than one-third of respondents to Community Pharmacy England’s winter pressures poll said they were concerned their pharmacy businesses may not survive the winter months.…

Ban on puberty blockers in the UK made indefinite, government says

Independent expert advice provided by the Commission on Human Medicines has urged that the ban continue while progress is made towards safeguarding children and young people.…

NHS data show significant variation in GP referrals to Pharmacy First across England

Exclusive: GPs in one integrated care board area made more than 11,000 Pharmacy First referrals between 31 January and 30 September 2024, while in another the figure was lower than 650.…

Tackling pharmacy funding crisis crucial to NHS transformation priorities, CPE tells government

Responding to the consultation shaping the government's ten-year plan for the NHS, Community Pharmacy England called for investment to assure the sector’s “long-term stability”.…

Autumn budget could result in £200m additional annual costs for community pharmacies, finds analysis

Pharmacy bodies have called on the government to offset costs for community pharmacies related to increases in employers' national insurance contributions and the national living wage as it has done with the NHS.…