The key message from the launch of the IPU’s White Paper was that strategic vision and resources are needed to optimise community pharmacies. Held on World Pharmacy Day on 25 September in the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI) on Kildare Street in Dublin, the IPU told the politicians and public officials gathered that the White Paper lays out a policy framework to transform pharmacy care in this country by turning pharmacies into key healthcare hubs, thus improving access to community care. IPU President Tom Murray said that with the right strategy and resources pharmacies can play a greater role in improving access to community healthcare: “With 78 million visits per year pharmacies are the most accessed part of our healthcare system. However, the absence of a national pharmaceutical care policy limits their potential.”
A central recommendation of the Expert Taskforce on the Future of Pharmacy Services is allowing pharmacists to prescribe medications for common conditions. The IPU says that with appropriate resourcing and an implementation plan, this service will allow pharmacists to prescribe medication directly for patients and facilitate quicker access to care.
The IPU is also calling for:
“These are not new schemes or ideas; they are tried and tested and functioning well in other countries,” Mr Murray said.
Mr Murray also put forward the overwhelming need for appropriate resourcing, to enable this vision of pharmacy: “Many pharmacies, particularly those in rural areas, are facing financial difficulties due to outdated payment structures and rising costs. The average pharmacy receives almost two-thirds of its income from the State for providing care through the community drug schemes. The fees provided for this care have been frozen since 2009, and pharmacies like every other business and individual, have experienced soaring operational costs.”
The White Paper also outlines proposed reforms to address the shortages of pharmacy staff highlighting that a comprehensive workforce planning strategy is required to address skill gaps, improve access to pharmacy education, and ensure adequate staffing levels are maintained.
The event provided the opportunity to highlight that pharmacists spend up to 82 per cent of their time on administrative tasks managing community drug schemes, leaving less time for patient care.
Mr Murray explained the impact of this red tape. “There is an overwhelming administrative workload that leaves little time for patient care. Worryingly, 27 per cent of pharmacists are considering leaving the profession due to the administrative burdens associated with the complexity of managing existing drug schemes.”
The IPU are calling for the implementation of a modern ICT system and streamlined processes to automate routine tasks allowing pharmacists to dedicate more time to direct patient care.
The recruitment of a Chief Pharmaceutical Officer (CPO) to lead and represent the sector at a national level has been to the fore of IPU advocacy for many years, and its importance was again highlighted by Mr Murray: “The appointment of a CPO, as exists in many other countries and as recommended in the recent Expert Taskforce report, would provide strategic leadership, and ensure representation and involvement of the pharmacy profession at the highest level nationally.”
The White Paper launch event was a huge success, providing an effective platform to espouse the strategic vision and resources needed to optimise community pharmacies. We thank all IPU members, politicians and public officials who attended and we will build on this platform over the coming months. Further images from the event will be available in the November IPU Review.
The IPU used the White Paper launch to provide an overview to the assembled politicians and public officials of the vision outlined in the White Paper, during a structured presentation. However, IPU Executive and Committee members, and staff, used the opportunity to remain in the RCPI (which is located very close to the Houses of the Oireachtas), all day, so politicians who could not attend the presentation could attend at a later time, and be briefed on the IPU’s strategic vision for the pharmacy sector. This worked very well, as many TDs and Senators attended throughout the day.
We thank all members who attended, as it was vitally important to have a geographical spread of members in attendance so they could personally brief their local public representatives.
All politics is local, and we encourage IPU members to have their voices heard as we enter the final run-in to the next General Election. Please see page 28 for an article on lobbying tips for community pharmacists.
Jim Curran
Director of Public Affairs and Communications, IPU
Highlighted Articles
