Community Pharmacy Scotland (CPS) welcomes the recent development in England of community pharmacist access to patient GP record data on medications, investigations and observations. Whilst positive developments have been made in Scotland.

The Scottish Government has published its NHS Operational Improvement Plan, which describes how the commitments outlined in the First Minister’s January speech will be delivered. In his speech, First Minister John Swinney announced plans to make it easier for people to see a first point of contact with the NHS, for example a community pharmacist. The Operational Improvement Plan states that the Scottish Government will further expand the NHS Pharmacy First Scotland service, enabling community pharmacists to treat a greater number of clinical conditions.

NHS Education for Scotland have launched a new eLearning module on menopause, and it is available now on Turas Learn: Menopause Module.

Please note: Due to ongoing discussions with Public Health Scotland (PHS) the final round of Adjusted Prices for March are likely to be agreed and published on Tuesday 1st April 2025.

This Circular advises community pharmacy contractors that the Serious Shortage Protocol for Estradot® (Estradiol) 50 micrograms / 24 hours transdermal patch (SSP079), a hormone replacement therapy (HRT) product, due to expire on 21 March 2025 has been extended until Friday 4 April 2025.

Here is a round-up of all the important news this week, including the latest updates on Independent Prescribing and Community Pharmacy vacancies within the network.

NHS Inform offers Women’s Health pages with advice and support. Resources for promoting these pages and raising awareness about endometriosis are available from the SG Campaign Resource Centre. Community pharmacies in Scotland provide support for women’s health issues through Pharmacy First.

Your next courier collection is scheduled for Thursday, April 3rd, 2025. We have produced the following guidelines for your prescription bag submissions.

Community pharmacists who completed the CPS/NES Independent Prescribing Training can attend a Teach & Treat (T&T) session after qualifying and completing four Clinical Skills days. These sessions, led by experienced prescribers, offer valuable support. New hubs are now open in Saracen Pharmacy and Garscadden. For details, check your TURAS account.

NHS Education for Scotland (NES) is seeking volunteers to help develop the Pharmacy Foundation Training assessment for 2025. Subject matter experts are needed for 45-minute interviews via phone or Microsoft Teams to create scenarios for Situational Judgement Tests (SJTs). Interested individuals should contact Jo at Work Psychology Group to schedule an interview. No financial compensation is provided.

Our colleagues at NSS have let us know that there is planned downtime of the patient registration service from 6pm on Friday April 4th to 8am on Monday the 7th of April.

FT/ PT Pharmacist role days negotiable for local community Pharmacy in Lochgilphead. Would suit experienced or newly qualified pharmacist looking for a stable work/learning environment. Potential to support Independent Prescribing course should this be desirable. Possible live in accommodation due to location.

Here is a round-up of all the important news this week, including the latest updates on Independent Prescribing and Community Pharmacy vacancies within the network.

As a Senior Dispenser, you will be a key player in the smooth operation of our luxurious, high-end pharmacy, where we pride ourselves on delivering premium service in a spacious and elegant environment.

The Chief Medical Officer along with the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer and the Interim Chief Nursing Officer has writing to provide members with important details regarding the 2025 Spring COVID-19 vaccination programme, which will run from 31st March to 30th June 2025.

The CPS Board is currently discussing and reviewing the following top three items. While these are still "works in progress" and specific details are not yet available, further information will be provided as it becomes available.

We are pleased to confirm that the next Independent Prescribers meeting will take place on Thursday 27th March 2025.

You will have received a form in February, directly from CPS, asking you to send details for your organisation's finance lead and inviting you to join the CPS WhatsApp Groups. If you have not completed and returned the form, you need to do so asap.

As part of the policy team’s involvement on the Digital Prescribing and Dispensing Pathways programme we are looking for your input on some key questions to help inform how the system is built.

The Specialist Pharmacy Services (SPS) website represents a valuable resource to Pharmacy teams and is well worth taking a look at for those not already aware of it.