Pharmacy First
The Minor Ailment Service, delivered by community pharmacies since 2006 has been replaced with the new NHS Pharmacy First Scotland Service. This is the biggest change to the community pharmacy contractual framework in recent years.
NHS Pharmacy First Scotland
Visit the Community Pharmacy Scotland Pharmacy First Info Hub for further information.
NSS hold the most up to date "Approved List" here
See below links to the Pharmacy First PCA and GP practice communications -
Letter and information for GP practices
Two new PGDs are available for use from 15th June, the PCA covering these new additions is here.
Optometry
Please see circular (NHS Pharmacy First Scotland - Updated Guidance and Referral Form for Treatment of Minor Eye Conditions) which provides guidance for Optometry referrals and as recommended to enable local discussion. The list of Fife optometrists can be found here.
An editable referral form is available here - NHS Pharmacy First Scotland Consultation Form Optometry - Pharmacy Referral or as a pdf here -
NHS Pharmacy First Scotland Consultation Form Optometry - Pharmacy Referral (pdf).
Patient Group Directions and Assessment Forms
There are Five PGDs for Pharmacy First which can be found here. Please sign up and return the authorisation to Fife.pgd@nhs.scot The authorisation forms can be found separately for completion here
To accompany the Pharmacy First PGDs there are nationally agreed assessment forms and GP notification forms editable versions are provided here.
Other Useful Forms
Below is a privacy notice for display in the pharmacy -
Below is a link to consultation forms which may be used for recording consultations in advance of inputting into the PMR -
Below is a link to a referral form which may be used to provide the patient with information to pass on to the partner service you are referring them to -
Pharmacy Non Urgent Pharmacy First Referral Form
Training
"As part of Our Health Matters, a series of projects developed to tackle the health inequalities experienced by Scotland’s Gypsy/Traveller community, we have developed a new Turas Learn module called Communication Matters. This module is targeted at community pharmacists, in particular those involved in Pharmacy First. It provides guidance on how community pharmacy teams could improve their communication skills to ensure that people understand and can act on the information they are given.
This will not just benefit Gypsy/Travellers, it should benefit everyone who uses the Pharmacy First services.
A link to the module will soon be created on the Pharmacy First website. In the meantime I would be grateful if you could ensure your community pharmacists are aware of the module and encouraged to complete it." Link below:
Resources
In an effort to improve our patients’ journeys and ensure the most appropriate referrals into the pharmacy first service here are some resources to help -These may be handy to have at reception areas of community pharmacies and general practices with an aim to improve the referral process:
Table of General Conditions – A short A-Z list of the most common minor conditions that the pharmacy first service is designed to support.
UPDATED! [18/12/2023] Table of National PGD Conditions and Exclusion Criteria Summaries – This short list is an easy reference for why some people should NOT be referred to community pharmacies for the pharmacy first service, and lists why the national PGDs don’t apply to everyone.
NEW! This referral form has also been produced for use in NHS Fife, at the request of community pharmacy teams and GP staff alike. An e-SBAR is always the preferred and endorsed method of communicating non-urgent clinical information to general practice colleagues - however this can be used when an e-SBAR has not been possible
NHS Fife Pharmacy Services have produced a set of newsletters for Primary Care teams, particularly aimed at general practice administrative staff.
Issue 1 is available now and describes the difference between Pharmacy First and Pharmacy First Plus Service.