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New medicine service: good in parts?

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New medicine service: good in parts?

Community pharmacists believe that the new medicine service (NMS) provides patients with additional advice and reassurance and reinforces pharmacy’s “capability to provide services beyond the supply of medicines”.

However some pharmacists say they have also experienced several difficulties implementing the service, the International Journal of Pharmacy Practice reports.

Beverley Lucas and Alison Blenkinsopp from Bradford University’s school of pharmacy interviewed 14 community pharmacists. Most welcomed the opportunities offered by the NMS to use their expertise to improve patient engagement and to develop pharmacies as a patient resource. The study found “some evidence” that the NMS improved pharmacists’ relationships with patients but it was felt that patients’ awareness and understanding of NMS was low and the service needed better publicity.

Collaboration with other healthcare professionals varied. While some community pharmacists work closely with local general practices, most don’t. Generally, pharmacists wanted to collaborate with nurses to manage chronic conditions, although such partnerships seemed rare.

Those pharmacists with established relationships with GPs generally regarded NMS “as an opportunity for further collaboration” but others reported “a lack of feedback and recognition” for their role. The logistics of arranging and conducting follow-ups and the service targets were described as “challenging” by some pharmacists. Concerns also emerged about possible overlap between NMS and the roles of GPs and nurses.

“Our findings indicate that NMS provides an opportunity for patient benefit and the development of contemporary pharmacy practice,” the authors conclude, “but better collaboration with GPs and practice nurses could enhance the service.” (doi:10.1111/ijpp.12180).

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