Each month I prepare a note of the most interesting or important regulatory developments in community pharmacy over the preceding month.
During June 2022, my team and I found ourselves talking about the following:
- The first nine Integrated Care Boards, or ICBs, assumed responsibility for community pharmacy services on 1 July 2022. It remains NHS England and NHS Improvement’s plan to have delegated responsibility for all pharmaceutical services to ICBs by 1 April 2023.
- On 14 June, the RPS and GPhC issued a new joint statement “highlighting the importance of regulatory and professional standards and guidance to ensure patient-centred, safe and effective care”. The statement can be viewed here: https://tinyurl.com/amms939e
- Voting on the Pharmacy Representation Review Steering Group’s proposals concluded, with 88.6% of voting contractors supporting the proposals on the future direction for PSNC and LPCs. The proposals which will now progress are based around four key themes – stronger governance across both PSNC and LPCs, better alignment with the NHS, appropriate resourcing and stronger collaboration. They can be viewed in full at https://pharmacy-review.org/ A detailed action plan for implementation will be issued following PSNC’s July meeting.
- The GPhC has published new Duty of Candour resources to help pharmacists and pharmacy technicians fulfil their professional responsibility to be open and honest with patients when something goes wrong and which causes, or has the potential to cause, harm or distress. The obligation has four limbs – telling the patient (or, where appropriate, the patient’s advocate, carer or family) when something has gone wrong, apologising to the patient (or, where appropriate, the patient’s advocate, carer or family), offering an appropriate remedy or support to put matters right (if that is possible), and explaining fully to the patient (or, where appropriate, the patient’s advocate, carer or family) the short and long-term effects of what has happened. The new guidance can be viewed at https://tinyurl.com/4khbts8z
- The Terms of Reference for the UK COVID-19 Inquiry were approved by the Prime Minister and published on 28 June. Hearings are now expected to take place in 2023, preceded by a listening exercise during Autumn 2022. The Inquiry will examine the UK’s COVID-19 preparedness, response and impact across three strands – public health, the health and care sector, and economic. The finalised Terms of Reference can be viewed here: https://tinyurl.com/2p8khfn4