Pharmacists snubbed by Government Leaders over Covid Jabs

Pharmacists snubbed by Government Leaders over Covid Jabs

As reported in the Daily Telegraph today (06.01.21) Pharmacists in the UK do not understand why their ready and waiting resource has not been included in the vaccination plans despite the “scrabbling around by Government for vaccinators among retired medics”. A statement made by Simon Dukes CEO of the Pharmaceutical Negotiating Services Committee.

The sector reckons it could easily vaccinate 1.3 million people a week in addition to the current program using its workforce of 11400 pharmacists.

It certainly seems a baffling approach to using our primary care resources.

In November reported in Pulse “GPs will ‘likely’ want to work with community pharmacies to ‘support delivery’ of the Covid vaccination enhanced service, NHS England has said.
Community pharmacies may also be called upon to ‘fill gaps’ in GP provision, it added.

So why have they not been included in pre-planning and offered the contract. We thought it might be a turf war between professions but with CCGs directing the local centres we hope this to be untrue.

PHN asks the NHS to reconsider what appears to be an insupportable action.

Overall all Primary Care providers need all the stimulation, care and support to be handed down visibly by NHS England, something that appears visibly lacking at present.