The NHS Pharmacy Contraception Service in England has enabled community pharmacists throughout the country to supply oral emergency contraception (hereafter referred to as oral EC) via a patient group direction (PGD) since October 2025. Prior to this it was an ‘enhanced’ service, locally commissioned, and consequently provision was somewhat patchy.  

While the national PGD has well-defined inclusion and exclusion criteria, supplying oral EC still poses several practical challenges, including assessing a patient's capacity to consent, identifying safeguarding concerns, dealing with non-English speakers and those with sensory impairments.  

This module provides practical advice for pharmacists on assessing patients' capacity to consent, offers examples of questions pharmacists could ask to determine that capacity, and provides guidance on identifying and acting upon any safeguarding concerns.