Pharmacy closures are having a “huge impact” on those that want them as figures present greater than 430 completely shut their doorways final 12 months, the nation’s affected person champion has warned.
Healthwatch England, a committee of the Care High quality Fee, added that older folks and people in rural areas are worse affected by the widespread closures.
It has issued the warning as pharmacy leaders say that “pharmacy deserts” across the nation may put extra strain on GPs and go away sufferers having to journey additional to entry care.
New knowledge obtained by Healthwatch, which gathers and champions the views of those that use well being and social care providers, warned that 436 pharmacies closed completely in England between 1 January and 31 December 2023.
That is equal of eight pharmacies shutting their doorways completely each week.
Healthwatch additionally sounded the alarm over short-term closures of pharmacies – which might final hours or days.
It warned that short-term and everlasting pharmacy closures are “undermining people’s access to care”.
Such closures have been additionally eroding folks’s confidence within the growth of pharmacy providers, in keeping with a brand new Healthwatch report.
This might embody the earlier authorities’s flagship Pharmacy First service, which inspires folks to hunt care from a neighborhood pharmacist for a number of widespread illnesses.
Sufferers have contacted Healthwatch to precise their frustration over closures, with explicit issues raised about entry to important medicines.
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Because of this it got down to examine the extent of the issue by sending freedom of knowledge requests to native well being organisations, referred to as built-in care boards, throughout England.
Some 13,863 short-term closures have been reported between 1 January and 31 December final 12 months, in keeping with a brand new Healthwatch briefing doc.
Many short-term closures have been pushed by workers shortages, Healthwatch mentioned, specifically the provision of locum pharmacists.
Evaluation of the info means that short-term closures have been extra widespread in rural areas in contrast with city areas.
North East and North Cumbria Built-in Care Board gave the impression to be worst affected by short-term closures, it discovered.
Healthwatch additionally discovered that areas with older populations have been extra prone to be affected by short-term pharmacy closures.
“These findings suggest that the group most likely to use pharmacy services, older people, may be least well served when it comes to accessing them,” in keeping with the report authors.
Healthwatch England is looking for sufferers to be higher notified about pharmacy closures and for pharmacy groups to be higher supported to have contingency plans.
It has additionally referred to as for a nationwide analysis to contemplate points going through pharmacy providers.
Debbie Riddell, from Paignton in Devon, mentioned she has confronted problem when attempting to gather prescriptions for thyroid and blood strain points.
The 70-year-old mentioned: “Many of the pharmacies in my area have closed down. My local one is still open, but staff are overwhelmed with the demand.
“I used to be shocked by what I noticed on my latest go to to choose up my remedy, I needed to queue out the entrance door and look ahead to at the very least 20 minutes to be attended to.
“There’s even a notice at the door that because of closures in the area, it will now take at least 10 days to prepare a repeat prescription.”
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From August 2023: Pharmacies closing at speedy price
Louise Ansari, chief government at Healthwatch England, mentioned: “Our research has shown that temporary pharmacy closures present a widespread challenge in England.
“This situation is having enormous impacts on older folks and is especially acute in rural areas the place folks already should journey additional to go to their pharmacist.
“Staff shortages, the key driver of permanent and temporary closures, call into doubt the potential of Pharmacy First, meaning people can’t get the advice, care and medications they need and when they need them.”
Commenting on the report, Paul Rees, chief government of the Nationwide Pharmacy Affiliation, mentioned: “Community pharmacies act as the front door to the NHS.
“If folks lose entry to them, it’ll power extra sufferers into the 8 o’clock scramble at their GP surgical procedure, placing strain on the remainder of our NHS system.
“1.6 million people a day visit their pharmacy but they are closing at a record rate, and millions of people are seeing the effect of that in their communities.”
