The ‘Pharmacy Technicians Report 2018 – community pharmacy skill mix and the current UK landscape’, highlights proposals to develop the roles of community pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, and the skill mix required to meet patients’ needs.
Since releasing the first chapter we have received some feedback asking why we are publishing the report in sections. We are happy to respond.
The in-depth report has been divided into eight sections each dealing with a significant area of consideration. It is being released in this way so that each important principle can be considered in detail and engage both pharmacists and pharmacy technicians alike. This process will also allow any important principles that emerge during the debate or any further information that becomes available to be used to inform the future sections where appropriate.
It was revealed recently that government officials and members of its Rebalancing Board have been involved in discussions around the possibility of pharmacy technicians taking over the operation of a community pharmacy and supervising the sale and supply of medicines in the absence of a pharmacist.
The PDA is implacably opposed to such a suggestion on the grounds that a pharmacy operating in the absence of a pharmacist is never going to be as safe for a public as a pharmacy with a pharmacist present. The PDA’s position on supervision is that any changes made to the rules on supervision must make the pharmacist more accessible to the public in the community pharmacy and not less so.
The PDA position on pharmacy technicians is that if pharmacists are to become more patient facing in the future, then an extended role and greater responsibility for pharmacy technicians is not only desirable, but ultimately essential. However, the transitional steps must be made as part of an overarching plan for community pharmacy; one that secures the support and respect of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians alike. Above all, these transitional steps must be safe for the public.