SCOTLAND’S Community Pharmacy owners today expressed their support for a Health Committee recommendation to increase the use of their expertise in medicine to look after care home residents.
Begins a spokesperson: “Community Pharmacy Scotland – which represents the owners of Scotland’s 1,232 community pharmacies – believes the publication of the Report titled an Inquiry into the Regulation of Care for Older People by the Health and Sport Committee of the Scottish Parliament will go a long way to secure delivery of high-quality pharmaceutical care for patients resident in care homes.
“The Committee has recommended that the Scottish Government considers making the chronic medication service available to patients in care homes. This would allow care home residents to receive the same level of care that is available to patients in the community.”
The chronic medication service aims to encourage joint working between GPs and community pharmacists to improve patient care by:
- Identifying and Prioritising risk from medicines
- Minimising adverse drug reactions
- Address existing and prevent potential problems with medicines
- Provide structured follow-up and interventions where necessary between health professionals
Community Pharmacy Scotland is also delighted that the Health and Sport committee have recognised that healthcare professionals who are directly involved in the provision of care for residents of care homes have a unique insight into the quality of care being delivered.
Community Pharmacy Scotland notes the Care Inspectorate has developed a questionnaire for all health and social care professionals to support their risk based inspection process. We look forward to the implementation of the questionnaire in practise and we are sure our members will engage with the questionnaire as appropriate.
Harry McQuillan, chief executive of Community Pharmacy Scotland, said: “There has been universal agreement that it is necessary to give pharmacists greater involvement in carrying out regular pharmaceutical assessments and care plans for residents living in care homes who require medication.
“These care plans would be shared with appropriate professionals and it is our belief this will improve the care of patients in this setting.
“I would like to take the opportunity of thanking the Health and Sport Committee for their time taken in the production of this report and I hope its many recommendations are prioritised and actioned as soon as practicable to improve the care of this vulnerable group of patients.”
-ENDS-
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