Following the announcement of new measures to “help ease immediate pressures” on pharmacy teams, Malcolm Harrison, CEO of the CCA said:
“The CCA welcomes the measures announced today by NHSE&I and DHSC which will give greater capacity in community pharmacy teams to administer Covid-19 vaccines and focus on providing care for patients. The CCA has been lobbying for a reduction in nonessential non-clinical tasks to reduce the pressure on community pharmacy teams this winter. We will continue to advocate for further changes to increase the capacity and capability of community pharmacies to meet the increased pressures we now face. We urge the Government to support our calls for pharmacy technicians to be allowed to administer the Covid-19 vaccination under a Patient Group Direction (PGD).
The community pharmacy sector continues to defy all odds and smash records, with the latest figures showing the sector has delivered 16.7m Covid-19 vaccinations to date. Covid-19 has shown the invaluable role community pharmacy plays in protecting the health of local communities. This is an opportunity to permanently evaluate the work pharmacy teams do, to ensure it delivers maximum value to the NHS, the taxpayer, and the patient. This means avoiding bureaucracy, simplifying processes, and focusing on patient care.”