Issue - meetings

To consider a report of the Director of Public Health.

Stockport Health and Wellbeing Board has a duty to prepare and publish a regular Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) . We are undertaking a full update of the Stockport PNA in 2014/15, so that we can update our understanding of the priority needs and meet our statutory duties to publish by April 2015.

The PNA requires a statutory 60 day consultation with a limited range of stakeholders who must be served with a draft PNA for comment. The consultation launched on 12th September and is running until 17th November.

The purpose of the report is to provide the Scrutiny Committee with an opportunity to discuss and comment on the draft PNA document and also to examine the consultation process.

The Scrutiny Committee is asked to:

    (i)        consider and comment on the consultation process outlined in section 3;

  (ii)        to consider the content of the draft Stockport PNA 2015, particularly focusing on the following questions:

§  The document sets out the draft results of the pharmaceutical needs assessment for Stockport. Does it achieve this?

§  Is the Committee aware of any relevant information that has not been included which could affect the statements or conclusions in this document?

§  This document shows that pharmaceutical provision within Stockport is satisfactory with limited identified gaps. Does the Committee have any comments on this overall conclusion?

§  Does the Committee have any other relevant comments to add to this document?

Officer contact: Eleanor Banister, 0161 474 2447, eleanor.banister@stockport.gov.uk

The Director of Public Health submitted a report (copies of which had been circulated) providing the Scrutiny Committee with an opportunity to comment on the draft Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) for Stockport. The Health & Wellbeing Board now had the statutory responsibility to complete and approve a PNA by April 2015, which would assess whether the current provision of pharmaceutical services met the current needs of the population and identify any gaps in service delivery. The Scrutiny Committee was invited to consider the draft PNA and make comment, and to address the questions set out in section 5 of the report.

Hazel Evans, Primary Care Pharmacy Advisor, attended the meeting to explain the background to the development of the PNA and to answer questions from councillors.

The following comments were made/ issues raised:-

·         Concerns were raised about the decrease in the number of pharmacies providing smoking cessation services. In response it was stated that the previous contract for this enhanced service had been restrictive in the therapy that could be provided as a consequence of which many providers had ceased to offer it, meaning the current number was more reflective of the extent of services being offered. In relation to Brinnington, it was stated that pharmacists were being trained to deliver an improved cessation programme, as it was recognised that the need in this area was greater.

·         Concerns were raised about pharmacies, particularly those with multiple sites, closing on Saturdays, and whether the move to seven day working in the NHS and extended GP hours would create difficulty for residents who were not able to access pharmacies in the Town Centre. In response it was stated that over 50% of pharmacies did open on Saturdays, but that in many cases this could not be regulated. Should a GP surgery open on a Saturday, it was likely that local pharmacies would respond to this new need/ market and open accordingly.

·         Members discussed the number of internet pharmacies and the regulations governing them. Concerns were also expressed about marketing tactics used by internet pharmacies to attract new customers, particularly where older and vulnerable residents were signing up to internet services but not realising the implications. Members stressed the valuable service community pharmacies provided to many residents, particularly around delivery/ pick-up and repeat prescriptions. It was also commented that community pharmacies could sometimes focus on the most profitable activities that were not necessarily those services most valuable to the community.

·         Concerns were raised about the security of communication between pharmacies and GP practices, particularly when this was done by fax.

In relation to the questions posed in the report the Chair, on behalf of the Scrutiny Committee, provided the following answers:-

The document sets out the draft results of the pharmaceutical needs assessment for Stockport. Does it achieve this?

Response: Yes

Is the Committee aware of any relevant information that has not been included which could affect the statements or conclusions in this document?

Response: No further comments.

This document shows that pharmaceutical provision within Stockport is satisfactory with limited identified gaps. Does the Committee have any comments on this overall conclusion?

Response: Potential gaps in relation to Saturday opening hours in the context of expanding GP operating hours.

Does the Committee have any other relevant comments to add to this document?

Response: See comments above.

RESOLVED – (1) That the report be noted and Hazel Evans be thanked for her attendance and presentation.

(2) That the comments and responses of the Scrutiny Committee to the Draft PNA be submitted as part of the consultation.