The Pharmacists’ Defence Association (PDA) has urged the Scottish health minister Humza Yousaf to take urgent action to stop temporary closures, in a bid to protect patients’ access to pharmacies.

Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) will remain in place on a raft of hormone replacement therapy (HRT) products until the end of October, as supply chain disruption continues to bite.

Robbie Turner has been appointed to the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) as its chief transformation officer to oversee an overhaul to pharmacy representation in England.

Worries over the availability of pharmacists and “rapidly inflating locum rates” could hamper the ability of pharmacies “of all sizes” to “reach their full potential”, pharmacy bodies have warned.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s (RPS) director for England is leaving the professional body for a new role in hospital pharmacy.

An “integrated and funded” plan for the pharmacy workforce should be developed and laid before parliament within the next year, a group of MPs has recommended.

Public sector pay rise annoucements have thrown community pharmacy’s “unresolved funding crisis” into sharp relief as years of real-term cuts continue to bite, pharmacy bodies have warned.

The Scottish government must “introduce emergency regulations”, including financial sanctions, to force Scotland’s pharmacies to open according to their contracted hours and end “unnecessary closures”, the Pharmacists’ Defence Association (PDA) has urged.   

A C+D Award-winning online training programme to help pharmacy staff spot “red flag” cancer symptoms in walk-in patients is now available for teams across England, after a successful pilot in Devon. 

James Morris has been appointed the minister with responsibility for patient safety and primary care – which includes community pharmacy – the Department of Health and Social Care (DH) has confirmed to C+D. 

The position of pharmacy minister is temporarily vacant as Maria Caulfield has been appointed to a new role, the Department of Health and Social Care (DH) has told C+D.

The Department of Health and Social Care (DH) is reviewing how NHS landlords calculate rentals for health centre pharmacies, pharmacy minister* Maria Caulfield has revealed.