Launched in September, Rowlands’ pharmacy in Ellon, Aberdeenshire was picked by the multiple to be “one of its flagship investments”, a spokesperson for Rowlands told C+D on Tuesday (December 7).

The chain has more than 450 pharmacies across Scotland, England and Wales, but it chose to invest in its Ellon pharmacy because it is “a high-performing pharmacy… more able to adopt innovation”, the spokesperson added.

“Its customer base is representative of that across the whole of the estate”, they said.

 

24-hour prescription collection point

 

Open six days a week, Monday to Saturday, the pharmacy offers a range of “specialist services”, combining “traditional dispensing services” with new technology, the spokesperson added.

The branch has an automated 24-hour prescription collection point, ‘PharmaSelf’, which allows customers to collect prescriptions at any point during the day.

“A dedicated health station will also give customers the opportunity to keep their everyday health in check”, the spokesperson added.

The health station located in the pharmacy allows patients to measure their body mass index, blood pressure and body fat in under five minutes.

It also provides “seasonally led advice and guidance, such as help to stop smoking through to weight management and winter remedies”, the spokesperson said.

Flu and pneumococcal vaccinations are available as part of a wider service portfolio, providing patients with advice for treating minor ailments as part of the Pharmacy First scheme.

Rowlands does not yet know how and when it will roll out this model across more branches.

“Ellon will allow us to assess which new services people want and value, which then allows us to decide the extent to which we roll these out across the wider network,” the spokesperson added.

 

“Community pharmacy is at the heart of national healthcare system" 

 

Following a visit to the pharmacy last month, MP for Gordon, Richard Thomson said: “I am delighted that Rowlands has chosen Ellon to be one of its first flagship pharmacies delivering services that will improve healthcare for local people.

“As the COVID-19 pandemic proved, community pharmacy is at the beating heart of our national healthcare system. I would urge all local people to make full use of what this pharmacy can offer to improve their health and wellbeing.”

Last month, C+D revealed that community pharmacies in Scotland could be be commissioned to offer some vaccination services as health boards start to diverge from a GP-based vaccination model.

In November, the Scottish Government also unveiled plans to further expand the range of conditions treated under the NHS Pharmacy First service and confirmed that pharmacists had completed more than two million consultations since the service launched in July last year.