Pharmacies to provide same-day patient appointments to cut pressure on GPs

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Under the new NHS Community Pharmacist Consultation Service, which comes into effect from 1 October, patients calling NHS 111 seeking help for minor conditions will be offered an appointment at their local pharmacist.

The service will be expanded over the next five years to include direct referrals from GPs and A&E. The DHSC said that up to 6% of all GP consultations, some 20m appointments a year, could be safely transferred to community pharmacy.

The service is part of a new five-year contract for community pharmacy announced this week. Pharmacies that sign up to provide the service will receive funding this year to help them adapt their business and, from October, they will receive £14 per completed consultation.

Referral from GP practices, which is the next planned stage in the development of the service, could be introduced across England from April 2020.

https://www.gponline.com/pharmacies-provide-same-day-patient-appointments-cut-pressure-gps/article/1591744
 
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