Private GP practice Midland Health has raised concerns of the impact that possible pharmacy collective action will have on GPs.
Last week, the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) announced that 99% of England pharmacy owners who participated in its collective action ballot approve of limiting pharmacy services unless funding is improved.
Read more: NPA gives DH ‘time to digest’ results of 99% ‘Yes’ collective action ballot
But a spokesperson for the Edgbaston and Birmingham City Centre practice said that “if pharmacies are forced to reduce their hours or close altogether, this will put immense pressure on GP practices already struggling to keep up with appointments”.
“Many practices are already seeing more and more patients coming to them for services that could easily be handled by a pharmacist”, it yesterday (October 21) told C+D.
Read more: NPA protest ballot: Government ‘committed to working with sector’
“This surge in demand has led to longer wait times for appointments, increased pressure on staff and delays in providing care for more serious conditions,” it added.
“The government needs to urgently reconsider its funding cuts and invest in community pharmacies to ensure that patients can continue to access the care they need”, it said, adding that pharmacies “are a vital part of our healthcare system”.
GP collective action
In July, GP contractors and partners in England voted “overwhelmingly” to take protest action over the 2024/25 GP contract, which 99.2% of British Medical Association (BMA) GP and GP registrar members voted to reject back in March.
The BMA urged protesting surgeries to take any or all of ten protest actions, including switching off GP Connect functionality, limiting “daily patient contacts per clinician” to 25 and switching “off medicines optimisation software”.
At the time, the NPA warned that “collective action by GPs [was] bound to have a ripple effect on community pharmacies”.
Read more: Collective action: NI minister to meet pharmacists over NPA ballot
And according to a poll of 4,589 pharmacy owners conducted by Community Pharmacy England (CPE) in August, a quarter of pharmacies reported “a rise in informal referrals from general practice” since the action began.
“Almost half of community pharmacies report they have seen a reduction in Pharmacy First referrals and an increase in patients voicing frustration with GP services,” it said.
“CPE is concerned that pharmacies could be overwhelmed with displaced and unfunded patients at a time when capacity in the sector is already so stretched,” it added.
