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The Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework

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Task & Finish Group on Pharmaceutical Services

 Task and Finish Group on Pharmaceutical Services - Letter to LHBs & Trusts

 Emerging Themes: Improving Pharmaceutical Services in Wales

Summary of the New Contract

Essential Services Specifications

Advanced Services Specification

Introduction

A new contractual framework was introduced for community pharmacy in April 2005.  Drawing on community pharmacy's assets of skills, expertise and experience of pharmacists and their staff and its presence in the community with a tradition of ready access to all, community pharmacy should:

·         be – and be seen to be – an integral part of the NHS family in providing primary care and community services

·         support patients who wish to care for themselves

·         respond to the diverse needs of patients and communities

·         be a source of innovation in the delivery of services

·         help deliver the aspirations within Designed for Life, and

·         help to tackle health inequalities.

Community pharmacies will now provide a greater range of services and are rewarded for the range and quality of those services.

The Service Framework

Under the new contractual framework services  are divided into three categories:

• Essential services, which must be provided by all community pharmacies.

   

• Advanced services, which require both the pharmacist and the pharmacy premises to meet certain criteria, and which all community pharmacies can choose to provide.

   

• Enhanced services, which are commissioned locally by LHBs to reflect the needs of the local population.

   

The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical services) (Amendment) (Wales) Regulations 2005 set out the requirements for essential services. These can be found at The Office for Public Sector Information.

Advanced and enhanced services are not specified in the Regulations, as they are directed services. These can be found in the latest version of the Drug Tariff.

Funding

Details of the funding allocation to fund the new contract is issued to LHBs.

Details of the individual fees and payments can be found in th elatest version of the Drug Tariff.