Doctors face deluge when chemists are closed down
OVER-STRETCHED family doctors are set to be overwhelmed by patients demanding millions of extra appointments a year under controversial Government plans to slash the number of high street chemists.
A quarter could be forced to close after the Department of Health announced it would slash their funding by £170million.
The move prompted almost two million people to sign the biggest ever health care petition organised by Pharmacy Voice to demand the cuts be reversed.
Research by the National Pharmacy Association has revealed the proposals could mean an extra million patients a month using GP and other local NHS alternatives – putting an increasing strain on already under-pressure services. The figure was reached by calculating the displacement in “healthrelated” visits to community pharmacies that would occur if up to 3,000 chemists closed, as Government figures suggest.
Separate research by YouGov and commissioned by Pharmacy Voice also reveals one in four people who would normally visit a pharmacy for advice on common ailments would instead make a GP appointment.
The impact would be more severe in areas of high deprivation, where four in five people would visit their doctor. Labour MP Michael Dugher, who is leading a cross-party campaign opposing the cuts, said last night the figures showed that closing chemists would exacerbate the GP access crisis.
Just days after he led a debate on the issue in Parliament, Mr Dugher said: “It’s already getting harder and harder to get an appointment with a GP. Under these arbitrary plans to slash funding for high street chemists, our GP surgeries will be even more overwhelmed and overstretched.
“Community pharmacies save the NHS money by promoting public health, dispensing medicines and providing advice on minor ailments.
“That stops people making unnecessary trips to the doctor’s or A& E. Ministers need to listen to the public and shelve these plans to cut community pharmacies.”
The number of people forced to wait at least a week to see a GP has already risen by half a million in the past year.
Former Liberal Democrat health minister Norman Lamb said: “Cutting vital community pharmacies will tear a lifeline away from people in need, who rely on their local pharmacist to access medicines and health checks.
“It will also hugely increase pressures on other health services who will have to fill the gaps. The unprecedented number of people voicing concerns shows just how many lives will be affected by this ruthless move.
“Ensuring access to medicines locally and conveniently results in a healthier population, from babies to OAPs.”
Some 1.2 million health-related visits are made to community pharmacies across the country every day—more than to any other primary care provider.
The average person visits a pharmacy 14 times a year, and there are 11,500 community pharmacies across England. Funding is almost all derived from the NHS with each allocated an annual budget depending on how many prescriptions and services it provides.
The cuts come as Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt and officials urge people to make better use of pharmacies instead of seeing their GP.
Critics claim the proposal will also undermine a community resource just as important as a local bank or post office.
The Government has not earmarked any particular pharmacies for closure but health minister Alistair Burt previously warned MPs that up to 3,000 out of the existing 11,000 could shut.
Mr Burt said the aim of the commitment in last year’s spending review was to secure efficiencies not to close pharmacies.
‘The concerns show just how many lives will be affected’