Back in April, The Pharmacist spoke to three pharmacies to find out how they were planning to cope with the impending crisis, with small rural pharmacies reporting that they hoped to grow through the problems despite the significant overheads of running:

“Instead of cutting down on services we are planning on launching more, whether that be vaccinations, travel services or prescriptions. We are hoping to grow our way through the problems, unlike many multiples who seem to be cutting back on things like opening hours and reducing their services. If we can outgrow the problem by offering more services than our competitions - which honestly is not difficult at the moment - then we might not have to start downsizing.”

Three months on, costs were still rising but Mike Hewitson - the owner of the pharmacy in question - was doing his best to look after his team, but was mostly concerned about medicine costs, which he foresaw climbing at an alarming rate:

“We haven’t seen huge rises in acquisition costs of medicines yet but it’s a lagging indicator because the industry works ahead of itself.”

In fact, Mr Hewitson was right - a poll by the charity Asthma + Lung UK discovered that patients were beginning to ration their use of important medicines in order to save on prescription prices. Almost a sixth of people with asthma were cutting back on using their inhaler in order to make it last longer, and one in 10 were rationing use of their medical devices that require energy.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society has responded with a set of guidelines to help pharmacies get the coming months right, built on a foundation of professionalism, respect and prioritisation. The guidelines called for clear plans between NHS organisations and individual pharmacies in order to define what must be provided to ensure safe patient care, and what can be de-prioritised as the pressures continue to build. Working efficiently, making professional decisions in order to supply alternative medicines when shortages hit, and maximising the roles of the whole pharmacy team are all steps that many pharmacies are planning to take if the months ahead become even more challenging.

Your community pharmacy is dedicated to delivering outstanding patient care, and in the face of an oncoming cost of living crisis, they are working together to develop the long-term solutions that will benefit everyone in the community, with patients as the priority.

-

Your local pharmacy should always be your first port of call for minor ailments, with pharmacists trained to handle all manner of medical issues and help you find the best solution to your concerns. Pop into your neighbourhood pharmacy today for a conversation.