From April, hospitals in your area will be launching their referral to community pharmacy service via the PharmOutcomes™ platform
Worcester Bank House Hotel, Spa & Golf BW Premier Collection
Bransford Ryton-On-Dunsmore Worcester WR6 5JD United KingdomFrom April 2020, it is likely that Wye Valley NHS Trust and Worcester Acute NHS Trust will commence making referrals.
The Local LPC will be hosting an evening event to provide details of how the service will affect you:
• Key benefits to patients, hospital and community pharmacy
• Real case studies
• Operational aspects including PharmOutcomes™ process
• Area Manager & Community Pharmacy team engagement
It is important ALL community pharmacists book-in and attend this event as it represents an important milestone for pharmacies.
Community pharmacy and hospital pharmacy colleagues in Worcester and Herefordshire STP have been working together with West Midlands AHSN to try and improve care for recently discharged patients where it is thought there would be potential benefit of a further intervention. Medicines Support (Hospital to Home) will be a new service which aims to ensure patients receive appropriate support from their community pharmacist soon after leaving hospital by using PharmOutcomes™ to pass messages securely to and from the hospital and community pharmacy.
Hospital pharmacists will use PharmOutcomes™ to refer patients nearing discharge to the patients chosen local community pharmacy. Patient information will be sent electronically to the community pharmacy and will include: date of birth, postcode, NHS number, GP details and details of discharge medicines. A member of the community pharmacy team will then contact the patient ideally within three days, to arrange for them to come in for a consultation. This visit may then result in the completion of a Medicines Use Review (until they are phased out), New Medicine Service and/or other suitable services; such as repeat dispensing, home delivery, stop smoking, flu vaccination etc...
This is currently not a nationally commissioned service, however can potentially lead to the important provision of other advanced or enhanced commissioned services by community pharmacies. Evidence has shown real benefits to patients receiving such interventions through reduced readmission rates back into hospital and improved health outcomes. The Pharmaceutical Journal has published an article about a similar scheme which you may wish to read: https://www.pharmaceutical-journal.com/your-rps/hospital-e-referral-initiative-boosts-post-discharge-murs-in-community-pharmacies/20068940.article?firstPass=false