The charity has recruited 33 community pharmacists so far, but is "ideally looking for 50-60 in total across England", it told C+D last Friday (February 3).

These volunteers will take part in the second phase of the project, a collaboration with the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s (RPS) London North West local practice forum.

It will build on the achievements of the first phase in 2015, which used eight pharmacists to initially test out the MUR tools, Parkinson's UK's professional engagement programme manager Suma Surendranath explained.

The long-term goal is to get Parkinson’s MURs established as a “nationally available” service, Ms Surendranath added.

Training is set to take place until March, with the MURs to be delivered from April-June. Parkinson’s UK will begin to inform stakeholders, including the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee and NHS England, of the outcomes of the pilot in October.  

Pharmacists taking part must complete online training, including a webinar, before they receive a toolkit for performing the MURs. They must then collect feedback from their patients and submit this data to the charity.

Parkinson's UK believes these MURs will equip pharmacists to ensure these patients "get the best" from their complex medicines regimens, assist with side effects and ensure GP referrals occur where necessary. 

Can you join the Parkinson's MUR pilot?

Pharmacists taking part in the project must be a member of the RPS, be MUR-accredited, and have two or three patients with Parkinson’s. 

For more information, contact Suma Surendranath.