Healthcare leaders have urged Northern Ireland pharmacies to adopt the healthy living pharmacy (HLP) model, ahead of invitations being sent out this week.

Government and pharmacy leaders stressed that contractors should accept invitations to train as a Health+Pharmacy, based on England's HLP model, to reap financial and public health benefits.

Pharmacists would not receive a direct payment for adopting the model, said a Health+Pharmacy Alliance spokesperson. However, contractors should see improvements in quality and productivity, which could lead to increased service revenue.

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	The government-backed model aims to tackle health inequalities and deprivation by focusing on smoking cessation, nutrition and exercise, stress, alcohol and drug misuse and signposting to mental health services. Training for the first wave of 100 pharmacies is expected to start this autumn.

Joining the initiative would enable Northern Ireland's 539 pharmacies to survive the tough economic climate and ensure "consistently high" levels of service, stressed supporters at the government's Health and Social Care Board (HSCB), Public Health Agency and the Health+Pharmacy Alliance.

Belfast contractor Terry Maguire, a member of the Health+Pharmacy Alliance, said it would improve contractors' chances of survival at a time of economic turmoil. "I think pharmacy has a huge opportunity in this if they realise it," he told C+D.

HSCB head of pharmacy and medicines management Joe Brogan said the initiative aimed to build on existing good practice within pharmacy and ensure the public experiences "a consistently high level of service to improve their health".   

Roseanne Hanna, pharmacist manager at McKeevers pharmacy, Kircubbin, told C+D that her pharmacy was more than happy to do any new services. "Any change is going to be a good thing because we need to diversify," she said.

A pharmacist and a non-pharmacist member of staff must complete a distance learning course and live training for Health+Pharmacy status. The course for non-pharmacists is Well Being, provided by C+D; training for pharmacists will be provided by the Northern Ireland Department of Health. There is no training charge for the first pharmacist and first pharmacy assistant in each pharmacy.

There will be a period of preparation time after the training when pharmacies will be expected to train other healthcare staff, develop a health promotion area and develop community engagement. The first pharmacies are expected to go live next spring.