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Pharmacy closures in deprived areas “catastrophic”

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Pharmacy closures in deprived areas “catastrophic”

New research by YouGov commissioned for Dispensing Health Equality, published today by Pharmacy Voice, shows that if faced with the closure of a local pharmacy, more than one in four people who would normally seek advice first from their pharmacy on common ailments would instead make an appointment with their GP.

According to NHS research, this rises to as many as four in five people in areas of high deprivation.

The report argues that an uplift in GP appointments is untenable in any part of the country, but especially so in those areas that find it difficult to attract GPs in the first place. The report urges the Government to take note of this in the context of its proposed funding cuts for pharmacy, and seeks reassurance that in both urban and rural areas of high deprivation access to this much needed community asset will be protected.

Dr Mark Spencer, a GP in Fleetwood in Lancashire and co-chair of NHS Alliance, comments: “At a time when there is an entirely unacceptable widening gap in life expectancy between rich and poor, extreme pressure on GPs and increasing public awareness of the role pharmacy is playing in delivering services to support public health, it would be catastrophic if the areas that most need it, are deprived of access to this crucial community asset.”

Professor Rob Darracott, chief executive of Pharmacy Voice, says: “No general practice can afford to take on additional appointments to advise on common ailments that can be self-treated. People are increasingly aware of the role local pharmacies play in not just dispensing medicines, but in dispensing vital health services.

“Advising and helping people to treat minor ailments is a starting point, but increasingly pharmacy is playing a key role in helping people lead healthier lives through interventions like smoking cessation and weight management programmes. These are important stepping stones to increasing life expectancy in some of our most disadvantaged communities. Losing a pharmacy in these areas is simply not an option.”

It would be catastrophic if places are deprived of this crucial community asset

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