Pharmacists are leaving GP practices to return to community

Pharmacists are leaving GP practices to return to community

Avon local pharmaceutical committee chief officer Richard Brown has said pharmacists in his area are starting to leave general practice. They are returning to community pharmacy because they have become frustrated. They are having “very little” patient contact and not enough clinical services to do in practices.

In an interview with Independent Community Pharmacist, to be published next month, Brown (pictured) said NHS England’s drive to get pharmacists into practices. As well as funding them to employ up to 20,000 additional staff. Including “clinical” pharmacists, through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme has had “a massive impact” on the community pharmacy workforce across the country.

But he revealed some GP pharmacists are becoming frustrated. Having discovered their roles are “not all they are cracked up to be”. And suggested regular contact with patients in community pharmacy was also encouraging pharmacists in other parts of the country to leave general practice.

“I can’t change whether (pharmacists work in practices) or not. What I can do is make community pharmacy in my patch in Avon more appealing to come and work in because there’s more clinical services to do,” he said.

“I’m starting to see a migration out of general practice back into my community pharmacies. Now this is only just starting to happen because pharmacists who have historically worked in their local community pharmacy have actually got frustrated with the fact they work in general practice and have very little patient contact.

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Pharmacists are leaving GP practices to return to community