CCG roles for community pharmacists

One in 10 clinical commissioning groups has formal roles for community pharmacists, The Journal has learnt.

Roles range from board positions and seats on prescribing committees to formal observer status, according to findings from a survey of England?s local pharmaceutical committees carried out earlier this year.

According to the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, LPCs ? as the local representative bodies for community pharmacy ? should lead on work to influence CCGs.

The finding that 10 per cent of CCGs have formal pharmacist roles was described as "promising" by Mike King, head of LPC support for the PSNC.

"CCGs and other new bodies have their hands full at the moment as they struggle to get to grips with their new roles. The situation is very fluid and every CCG is different," Mr King explained.

He said: "If community pharmacy is to be in a position to influence CCGs, work needs to be done in this formative phase and LPCs . . . are the organisations to lead this work; this survey shows that they have got off to a promising start."

Comments from LPCs across England reveal wide variations in CCGs? stages of development and their "willingness to engage with pharmacy", the PSNC says.

However, a PSNC spokesman said: "Where LPCs reported no engagement, it?s because CCGs hadn?t established themselves or were being merged with other CCGs . . . we?re not seeing pharmacists being shut out of discussions."

A selection of reports that LPCs submitted to the PSNC survey are detailed in the March edition of PSNC Community Pharmacy News (see Panel). The PSNC has sent the consolidated comments to LPCs to enable comparison with other areas, and plans to carry out a further survey later this year.

Bury and Rochdale LPC reports "excellent engagement" with its CCG ? a committee representative has been invited to join the CCG?s clinical commissioning committee and the LPC chairman is a clinical member of the CCG?s board. County Durham and Darlington LPC does not have places on the CCG board but representatives are regularly invited to attend meetings, usually of prescribing sub-committees. Essex LPC has seats on a CCG board and on the CCG?s medicines management group.

Source: http://www.pjonline.com/news/ccg_roles_for_community_pharmacists

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