The NHS Community Pharmacist Consultation Service (CPCS)
Throckley Primary Care plus: Denton Park Medical Group, Denton Turret Medical Centre, Newburn Surgery, Parkway Medical Centre and Westerhope Medical Centre
We are participating in a new service where the aim is to direct patients to the most appropriate clinician, which may be a GP, another member of the Practice team, or a Pharmacist.
Not all of our patients need to see a GP – there are so many other skilled staff who can help.
We already ask you about your symptoms when you call, so the only difference will be is that if your symptoms could be resolved by a private consultation with a local pharmacist instead of the GP – you will be given a same day appointment referral with a pharmacist who has also signed up to this service.
We think this service will be a good thing and we appreciate it may feel odd at first, but once you see how great your local pharmacist is (they are highly trained and skilled clinicians) we don’t think you’ll look back. Anything we can do to free up GP appointments for more complex health needs has got to be a benefit to everyone.
Where you need to see a clinician for something not on this list you will be booked into a telephone consultation with a clinician at the Practice.
This will help get everyone treated at the right time by the right clinician.
How does this new Pharmacy service work?
- There is a set list of minor illness symptoms that qualify patients for a same day private consultation with a pharmacist.
- If the patient’s symptoms are appropriate, the GP practice can refer the patient for a same-day consultation with a community pharmacist. With the patient’s consent, the practice team can send an electronic referral message to the chosen pharmacy to support safe follow up and audit.
Once you have been referred what does the Pharmacist do?
- Following the referral, the pharmacist will contact the patient the same day by phone and either carry out the consultation by telephone, or arrange for the patient to attend the pharmacy, if appropriate. Some patients may be offered a video consultation by the pharmacist.
- The pharmacist will take the patient’s clinical history and ask about symptoms and any current medication. Following the consultation, the pharmacist will offer clinical advice and may sell the patient an over the counter product if appropriate and they agree.
- The pharmacist will make a record of the outcome of the consultation and send it to the patient’s GP by secure digital message.
What if the I speak with the Pharmacist, and they think I need to see my GP?
- Pharmacists are trained to recognise ‘red flag’ symptoms suggestive of more serious illness and after initial triage, where symptoms do suggest something more serious, the pharmacist will help the patient to arrange an urgent GP appointment using the practice’s dedicated professional telephone number or escalate to an urgent care setting such as the emergency department, if needed.
- This situation is infrequent, because Practice staff making the referral have a list of triage questions to ensure as much as possible that the right people are referred to the Pharmacist.
