Key Summary
- The PDA recognised the expansion as a major positive step for patients and the NHS.
- However, they warned that prescribing cannot merely be "squeezed in" around daily tasks.
- The association cautioned that reliance on local workforce capacity and varying ICB commissioning could create geographic health inequalities in patient access.
The Pharmacists’ Defence Association (PDA) has responded to newly published guidance for Integrated Care Boards (ICBs) on community pharmacy prescribing services in England.
They welcome the opportunities presented by the expansion while setting out key workforce safeguards required for safe delivery.
The PDA emphasised that the rollout of pharmacist prescribing marks a transformative development for primary care.
However, it warned that prescribing brings significant clinical responsibility, higher professional accountability, and increased workload that must be matched with national workforce planning, robust governance, and protected development time.
Referencing its own analysis of the Pharmacy First scheme, the PDA highlighted that service activity increased pharmacist workload by approximately 25% without a corresponding rise in staffing capacity.
Furthermore, findings from the Community Pharmacy Independent Prescribing Pathfinder Programme evaluation showed a clear risk of prescribing consultations being "squeezed in" around routine operational demands.
Equitable access and workforce protection
The association raised concerns that leaving uptake to localised commissioning, training availability, and individual employer support could result in a postcode lottery for patients:
- Regional Inconsistencies: Disparities in ICB funding and local workforce availability could lead to uneven patient access across different areas.
- Holistic Success Metrics: The PDA stressed that service success must not be measured solely by activity numbers, but also by workforce retention, pharmacist wellbeing, and clinical safety.
- Preventing a Two-Tier Workforce: Commissioners and employers must continue to recognise and support pharmacists focused on core functions, such as dispensing, clinical checking, supervision, and medicines optimisation, rather than disadvantaging those in non-prescribing roles.
The PDA concluded that frontline practitioners and their workforce representatives must be directly involved in the design and rollout of prescribing policies to ensure national strategies remain grounded in the practical realities of community pharmacy.
