Community pharmacy minor ailments services in Derbyshire have taken a double hit as both Derbyshire County and Derby City axed the schemes in March this year.

The cut in the city was particularly disappointing as the service had been running for a number of years, the LPC said.

The PCT blamed "financial reasons" for the decision, while Derbyshire County said its decision had "not been taken lightly".

Derbyshire County PCT explained that the service had led to "extra costs" on top of the spend on medicines, but also that the minor ailments scheme had been introduced to help improve access to GPs, a problem that had now been addressed by other measures.

The cuts were uncovered as part of C+D's investigation into the decommissioning of community pharmacy services which showed cuts in 25 PCTs across England in the six months to March 2011.

Pharmacists warned that cutting minor ailments schemes could push patients back to doctors.

"At a time when we are trying to get more efficient use of healthcare funds it seems nonsensical to be driving patients to GPs," said Alastair Buxton, head of NHS services at PSNC.

See how services have been affected by decommissioning on C+D's interactive map.