Scottish pharmacy leads the way!

Scottish community pharmacy's strength lies, I believe, in its ability to – and, more importantly, desire to – constantly revisit its strategy for the future and the progress that it is making in implementing that strategy.

When you consider the fact that, even in the last five years, Scotland has not only published the ground-breaking ‘Prescription for Excellence' strategy, but has also revisited, reassessed and reworked the principles contained within it, leading to the release of Rose Marie Parr's ‘Achieving Excellence in Pharmaceutical Care' last year. It is this perpetual motion that not only gives the profession its dynamism, but which sustains its vitality and, in doing so, drives community pharmacy forward.

‘Scottish community pharmacy never rests on its laurels,' says Community Pharmacy Scotland Chief Executive, Harry McQuillan. ‘When you take a look at what's happening at any given moment, you can see that the profession is constantly trying to improve and make services better than before. At the moment, for example, we are not only watching the development of the extended Minor Ailment Service in Inverclyde, but are also about to embark on a programme whereby 50 independent prescribers will be encouraged to deploy their skills in their community pharmacy setting, allowing them to assist patients at the point of contact without having to rely on patient group directions or sourcing an NHS prescription. This will utilise their expertise in medicines and maximise their participation in primary care.

‘Next April, we intend to revamp the Chronic Medication Service; learning from its successes to date, and revisiting those areas, in which we feel improvements could be made. We will also be aiming to make CPS' Vision For Practice strategy, which we launched last September, a reality.'

You will be able to hear more of Harry McQuillan's views on future plans for Scottish community pharmacy at The Pharmacy Show, where he and the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer, Dr Rose Marie Parr, will be participating in a discussion entitled, ‘Just what precisely is going on in Scotland? Is it smoke and mirrors, or do the Scots really have the recipe for success? CPS Chief Executive Harry McQuillan and colleagues reveal all.'

Everyone at Scottish Pharmacist is looking forward to both The Pharmacy Show itself – and to meeting many of you there!