Paydens has announced the launch of a private prescribing service – the “Fast Track Treatment Service (FTTS)” - in a bid to “increase access to same-day urgent care”, the pharmacy yesterday (March 4) told C+D .
The new service “allows patients to access care for a range of conditions including common infections in Paydens stores without needing to see their GP”, Paydens pharmacist training and development manager Phil Neal said.
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First launched in January, the service was trialed in just one pharmacy and has since been rolled out to “a further five stores with a view to having it live in 36 stores by the end of the year”, he added.
“In its current form, it is a private service that costs the patient £15 to access a consultation and then they pay for the private prescription as well” if needed, he told C+D.
“We have purposefully set the cost of the consultation to mirror the reimbursement from the Pharmacy First minor ailment scheme,” Neal said, explaining that Paydens aims “to maintain accessibility to urgent care and ensure that patients don’t see fees as a barrier”.
“Steady start”
The service allows pharmacist independent prescribers (IPs) to assess patients for “10 main conditions”:
- Otitis externa
- Bacterial skin infections
- Bacterial vaginosis
- Period delay
- Heavy painful periods
- Scabies
- Urticaria
- Eczema flare
- Oral candidiasis
- Erectile dysfunction
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Pharmacists can also use the service “to treat patients that fall just outside of the patient group directions (PGDs) for Pharmacy First such as adults with earaches”, which means that “we turn less people away due to the restrictions of working under a PGD”, Neal told C+D.
“In the first month of the service being live in our trial store, we have seen a 50% increase in Pharmacy First clinical pathways alongside a steady start to FTTS,” he added.
“Not without challenges”
But Neal noted that the launch “has not been without its challenges”, adding that “introducing such a new and innovative service with little existing experience to draw on was always going to be a challenge”.
IT issues delayed the initial rollout from November to January and some patients have been unhappy with having to pay for a private consultation, he told C+D.
“[But] we have worked hard to sell the benefits of the service to patients with an extensive information package on our website,” he said.
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“Overall we have been really pleased with how the service has started and hope to expand it in the future to involve more conditions such as gout and chest infections,” he added.
And in the future, he hopes that “the NHS can commission [the] service so that the cost to the patient is removed completely”.
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It comes after Well Pharmacy last month revealed the launch of its new “Online Doctor” service, providing “quick, convenient and confidential” access to prescriptions “without the need for in-person consultations”.
And Morrisons launched the “Morrisons Clinic” in January to provide an “online private prescription service” that delivers customers’ medicine in as little as 24 hours.
Meanwhile, alcohol harm charity Drinkaware last month announced it has partnered with Paydens to roll out a free “drinking check” in 128 of its pharmacies.
