Pharmacy’s role in PCN multidisciplinary teams supporting care homes
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought into sharp focus the importance of primary care network (PCN) teams providing support for care home residents and staff. This is about more than implementing the network contract directed enhanced service (DES) service specifications for care homes and structured medication reviews, important as they are.
This briefing explores how pharmacy professionals are supporting care homes. It spotlights examples of collaborative working in local areas and provides top tips to support PCNs.
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought into sharp focus the importance of primary care network (PCN) teams providing support for care home residents and staff. This is about more than implementing the network contract directed enhanced service (DES) service specifications for care homes and structured medication reviews, important as they are.
This briefing explores how pharmacy professionals are supporting care homes. It spotlights examples of collaborative working in local areas and provides top tips to support PCNs.
Key points
- In May 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, NHS England and NHS Improvement requested that pharmacy professionals support care home residents and staff, working in collaborative, multi-professional teams.
- Pharmacy professionals can contribute to improving services to care home residents in four key ways: facilitating medication supply, delivering structured medications reviews, supporting clinical reviews and supporting with medication queries.
- Health and care organisations in several areas are working in partnership to ensure care homes have access to pharmacy support and advice. This briefing spotlights three examples.
- Sharing resources and mutual trust between care home, pharmacy and clinical staff are essential.
