Transforming the future of pharmacy in England

Dr Nicole Atkinson, medical adviser for primary care, responds to the news that The Royal Pharmaceutical Society and The King’s Fund have announced the start of a project to transform the future of pharmacy practice in England over the next 10 years.

“The last two years have shown us more than ever the enormous amount of clinical expertise pharmacists bring to primary, acute and community care. It’s so much more than just medicines.

“Many pharmacists are already integrated with, or working closely with, their primary care networks and through them are contributing to the transformation of their wider systems, but the scale of involvement can be patchy across England and depends on a many different factors.

“A clear vision for pharmacy will not only help us design services that are sustainable and achieve best value and best possible outcomes for patients, it will also open up exciting opportunities for workforce training and progression”.