LPCs are concerned that pharmacists are not ready to take part in the NHS Call to Action consultation on the future of the sector, with only two months left to respond.

North-East London LPC secretary Hemant Patel said most pharmacists were not fully prepared to respond to the consultation, while PSNC said some LPCs had expressed concern that pharmacists did not realise its importance.

A Call to Action event organised by North-East London LPC last week (January 19) was attended by about 100 pharmacists, Mr Patel said. However, he was worried that they would not be able to submit a detailed response to the consultation, as they had not been briefed on how the sector could change over the next five years.

"I'd say 80 per cent of pharmacists who attended our Call to Action event had not even gone downloaded the [consultation] document," said North-East London LPC secretary Hemant Patel	More on the Call to Action Comment: This is a call we cannot afford to ignore Engage in ‘Call to Action' to feed into contract, says NHS chief NHS England calls on pharmacists to share thoughts on future of health system
	"They absolutely want to engage, but I'd say 80 per cent of [attendees] had not even gone to the [NHS England] website to download the [consultation] document," he told C+D.

The timing of the consultation, which was launched by NHS England last month and runs until March 18, meant some LPCs had been slow to contact pharmacists because of the Christmas period, he said.

Ealing, Hammersmith & Hounslow LPC chairman Hiten Patel, however, said pharmacists could still submit a useful response even if they did not understand the wider strategy for the sector.

"[Some] people can give a sophisticated argument, but there are also other arguments based on the day-to-day working model [that other pharmacists can present]. Often the people who give their opinion don't understand what's happening at a grassroots level," he told C+D.

The national pharmacy organisations said they were organising events and pharmacists were keen to get involved with the consultation.

PSNC said it had organised meetings in London and Leeds that had been attended by more than 50 LPCs. But some of these representatives were concerned that pharmacists in their areas "may not understand the importance" of the consultation or how to structure their responses, the negotiating body told C+D yesterday (January 20).

Many LPCs had already begun to work on the consultation at a local level and PSNC was preparing resources to support them and address their concerns, it added.

Pharmacy Voice chief executive Rob Darracott said the Call to Action was "not a bog standard consultation process" and the whole sector had "a part to play" in submitting a response.

As well as drafting its own response, the organisation was putting pharmacists in touch with each other so they could co-ordinate their answers. Pharmacy Voice would spend the rest of the consultation period "encouraging members and representative groups to get involved locally", he added.

Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) practice and policy lead Heidi Wright said the society was using its local practice forums to encourage its members to attend events in their areas. It was also undertaking "significant engagement" with patient groups to understand what they expected from community pharmacies, Ms Wright told C+D.

Pharmacists can submit their response to the consultation by taking part in an NHS England questionnaire.

Mark Collins' comment: This is a call we cannot afford to ignore.

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