There is no neighbourhood health model without community pharmacy

The NHS 10 Year Health Plan states that community pharmacies ‘will play a vital role in the proposed neighbourhood health service’.  

This role cannot be underestimated. Community pharmacies are best placed to deliver neighbourhood services because they sit in the heart of communities. Whether it be high streets, residential areas or housing estates, pharmacies replicate the neighbourhood structures in which they are located. With a higher density of pharmacies in areas of need, especially in deprived areas, pharmacies are the most open point of access in primary care. With community pharmacies as providers, neighbourhood services can be spread out in a way that will bring care closer to home and to those most in need.

“…there are no neighbourhoods without neighbours. With the decline of community spaces, pharmacies have taken up the mantle”

And there are no neighbourhoods without neighbours. With the decline of community spaces, pharmacies have taken up the mantle. People not only go for their health concerns, but for advice on their whole wellbeing and to feel part of their communities.

Pharmacies increase capacity for appointments and significantly reduce demand on the health system. People can walk in at any time. Open access to appointments could significantly reduce waiting list times. According to the 2024 Healthwatch report on people’s attitude towards pharmacies, 1.6 million people in England are walking through pharmacies every day, creating around 600 million appointments annually. Pharmacies delivering neighbourhood health services will create a more cost-effective health system.

Community pharmacy as a lynchpin 

There can be naivety about the capability of community pharmacy, but the reality is that pharmacies play a key role in prevention, urgent care and in supporting our local communities to take pressure away from other parts of the system.

Pharmacists are trained in many services that are usually delivered in hospital settings. For example, many pharmacies in London deliver services for blood tests, point-of-care testing, diabetic and cardiovascular checks.

Innovative leaders 

Pharmacy leaders work innovatively at scale. Recently we had colleagues from the NHS Confederation visit Pearl Chemist Group to learn about its use of automated machinery for medication dispensing services. Pearl Chemist is a family-owned pharmacy company with a strong community focus, but they have grown their business to provide services across south-west London. The use of automated machinery has helped Pearl chemist staff free their capacity to spend more time building relationships with patients.

“Community pharmacies are well placed to work at scale, as they can be the lynchpin for building networks between hospitals and communities”

However, automation is not the only way Pearl Chemist is innovative. The group works closely with its two local hospital trusts to provide medication packages for when patients leave hospital care. Community pharmacies are well placed to work at scale, as they can be the lynchpin for building networks between hospitals and communities. Closer working in this way would provide secondary care with access to unique insights in local population data attained by pharmacies working closely with communities.

What needs to change

But, for community pharmacies to become the lynchpin for delivering the neighbourhood health service, there are some changes are essential.

Firstly, we need contracting mechanisms that encourage collaboration. Contracts where primary care providers deliver services based on patient outcome rather than condition speciality. This allows the whole of primary care to work together to deliver the right care at the right time. 

We also need allocated time, structure and resource to develop pharmacy leaders, so they can be empowered to share their voice on local and national platforms. 

Working together as a system is essential 

Collaboration and integration of the health sector is not a new idea. We have been asked to deliver integrated care, and as leaders, we must accept the responsibility. All sectors need to come together and build those relationships otherwise we fail as a system. The neighbourhood health model is how we start.

Community pharmacy leaders are ready and waiting.

Amit Patel is the chief executive officer for community pharmacy in south-west London. You can connect with Amit on LinkedIn