Pharmacies will be asked to carry out the audit in the week starting Monday June 29, the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC) said in an update to contractors on Tuesday (June 16).

The audit is being carried out because, with the exception of referrals received via the Community Pharmacist Consultation Service (CPCS), patient consultations are not currently recorded anywhere, the PSNC said. 

The aim of the audit is to understand how many informal consultations are taking place and assess “their positive impact on the patient and wider health care system”.

The evidence collected will be used to “inform” and “support ongoing funding negotiations”, including the PSNC requesting more investment in the sector, the negotiating body said.

‘Make the case for more investment’

PSNC CEO Simon Dukes said that before the COVID-19 pandemic, the organisation had been hearing from pharmacists about the “increasing amounts of advice” they were giving to patients not referred through the CPCS.

“Some of this was to help people to manage minor conditions, but other people with more complex questions had also been presenting in pharmacies, often worried and saying that they did not want to wait to see a GP,” Mr Dukes said.

The pandemic has led to even greater demand for the services of community pharmacy but, now that “the initial peak has passed” there is an opportunity to capture data that demonstrates “the work we [community pharmacy] are doing and the impact it is having”, Mr Dukes added. Such data is essential for the PSNC to be able to “successfully make the case for more investment in the sector”, he said.

“I would ask all pharmacies to take part in this audit if they can. Much work has gone into making it as easy as possible for you to do so, and results from pharmacies testing the prototype have been encouraging,” Mr Dukes added.  

Counted as clinical audit

The audit, which has been tested by a small group of pharmacies to ensure it is easy to carry out, can be counted as one of pharmacies' clinical audits for 2020/21.

Full details of how to take part in the audit, which the PSNC is asking pharmacies to carry out on one specific day, will be available a week in advance on Monday, June 22.

In the meantime, contractors are being asked to plan for the audit, with the PSNC suggesting they consider which day during the week of June 29 to carry it out.

LPC officers and members have also been invited to take part in a webinar on Monday 22 June at 10 am about how they can support contractors with the audit.

Richard Brown, chief officer for Avon Local Pharmaceutical Committee and lead for the audit, said it has been “made as simple as we can”.

In addition to providing evidence that can be used “in the current national negotiations”, the audit will also give “a baseline of the activity that is happening in pharmacies”, which can be tracked over time to understand how community pharmacy is changing, Mr Brown said.