A national pharmacy minor ailments scheme in England could boost the European campaign to reduce the number of people unnecessarily requesting antibiotics from their GP, Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham LPC chair Dilip Joshi has told C+D.

His call came as patients were reminded about the overuse of antibiotics as part of European Antibiotics Awareness Day on Sunday (November 18), organised by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.

Mr Joshi stressed that pharmacists could play a key role in the campaign. But the "patchy" commissioning of minor ailments schemes in England was limiting pharmacy's role and failing to offer equity of access to patients, he said. 

"It's something that commissioners need to look at – you're then using pharmacy for those who don't need the doctor in the first place" Dilip Joshi, Lambeth, Southwark and Lewisham LPC

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A national scheme similar to the service agreed across Scotland and being rolled out in Wales over the next two years would give patients access to free remedies without the need to visit their GP and would particularly benefit deprived areas, Mr Joshi argued. "I think we need a scheme that's national," he said. "It's something that commissioners need to look at – you're then using pharmacy for those who don't need the doctor in the first place."

"You can actually educate patients, as well, so they will be aware next time, because in a typical GP consultation they don't have much time to go through all that and patients expect to come away with a piece of paper," Mr Joshi added.

Securing a national minor ailments scheme would be a "key priority" in negotiations with new NHS commissioners, PSNC told C+D.

"Many PCTs have commissioned local minor ailments schemes from community pharmacy in the past and we have seen that these schemes can free up doctors' time, increase convenience for patients and help to promote pharmacies as an important healthcare destination within the NHS," said PSNC head of NHS services Alastair Buxton.

OTC medicines body the Proprietary Association of Great Britain (PAGB) agreed pharmacists could play a role in helping reduce the use of antibiotics.

"The symptoms of common winter illnesses such as coughs, colds and sore throats can often last for longer than people expect," said PAGB chief executive Sheila Kelly. "When people are buying OTC medicines to relieve such problems, pharmacists can help provide reassurance by letting them know these timescales and how long they can safely self-treat for."

Read the latest on resistance to antibiotics and the drive to combat unnecessary use in Resisting resistance