RPS: Plans are good for patients

Plans to extend the role of pharmacists are good news for the public and local communities, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain (RPSGB) has said.

Local pharmacies are set to prescribe some medication and to screen for vascular disease and certain sexually transmitted infections.

The RPSGB said the plans would result in the public having better access to treatment to help prevent illness.

RPSGB president Hemant Patel said pharmacists have an "important role to play in providing access to healthcare for the most vulnerable members of the community".

"The recognition of this role is long overdue – but nevertheless welcome. There has been some resistance by those commissioning local services to include pharmacists as key providers of advice and treatment for their communities," he added.

"The time is now right for pharmacists to seize this opportunity and to take steps to ensure that the public benefits from these proposals.

"The RPSGB are proposing to government a set of professional standards to ensure a level of quality for the services. We look forward to working with pharmacists, patients, the public and government to deliver accessible health centres in every community that wants them."