To consider the following Motion in the names of Councillors Munro and P A Davies;
“This Council notes that:
1)
Community pharmacies are a critical part of primary
care and perform a vital frontline health service. They have also
played a significant role in supporting and caring for patients
during the pandemic and have remained accessible to the public at a
time when many people have been unable to access local GP
services;
2)
Community pharmacies have long been a common fixture
of many high streets. For many people, the local pharmacist is the
first point of care and many of us access pharmacies for a wide
range of health services. Community pharmacy is not just about
being a dispenser and retailer of medicines. As part of the NHS
Long Term Plan to improve the quality of care within the primary
care sector, the role of community pharmacy has expanded to meet
the growing demand, whereby pharmacies are commissioned to provide
services based on locally identified needs;
3)
The Company Chemists’ Association has revealed
a shortfall of over 3,000 community pharmacists in England, a
number which has increased over the last 5 years. In November 2021,
around 1,700 pharmacies experienced forced temporary closures due
to a lack of pharmacists. The shortfall will cause almost a fifth
of businesses to limit their services, including reduced opening
hours;
4)
Many pharmacies have been forced to close across the
country in recent years and this includes pharmacies in Kirklees.
NHS data has revealed that England saw a net loss of 215 pharmacies
in 2020/21, resulting in the lowest number of community pharmacies
since 2015;
5)
A Chemist & Druggist (C+D) survey in 2021 found
that pharmacies are struggling to recruit and retain staff. 74% of
pharmacy branch managers said that they have experienced
difficulties in recruiting pharmacists and pharmacy staff and 61%
said they had difficulty retaining staff in 2021.
This Council believes that:
1)
Any pharmacy closure is a loss to the community it
serves. The closure of community pharmacies is putting additional
pressure on GP practices and A&E departments;
2) Pharmacies are experiencing significant recruitment and retention issues. There may be a number of reasons for this, including significant responsibility and pressure for staff in work, an increasing workload during the Covid-19 pandemic and also pay levels not being competitive. Many pharmacists are leaving their roles for better pay and working conditions elsewhere. However, the workforce issues facing the sector may also be due, in part, to Brexit, which has seen a drop in EEA pharmacists registering in the UK, and also the recruitment of pharmacists into primary care networks (PCNs) and GP surgeries;
3)
The Government’s plans to channel patients
from GPs to pharmacists is likely to fail, unless the workforce
shortfall crisis is addressed;
4)
The Government needs to recognise the pressures
pharmacies face and provide better support to ensure that
recruitment and retention issues and challenges are addressed.
Solutions need to be deep-rooted and long-term. This means
investment, but it also means collaboration across the primary care
sector. Addressing these challenges will help prevent further
closures of pharmacies across Kirklees and across the
country.
This Council, therefore, resolves that:
The Leader of the Council will
write to the Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP, Secretary of State for Health
and Social Care, to demand that the Government devises an
evidence-led national workforce plan for community pharmacies to
help tackle recruitment and retention issues.”
Decision:
Item not considered (due to time constraints).