The national pharmacy bodies has created ‘Save Our Pharmacies’ campaign website to give new focus to calls for fair pharmacy funding in England.
The newly launched site contains key messages for public, politicians and stakeholders, and hosts campaign resources to be used by pharmacy teams.
The pharmacy bodies encourage members of the public and pharmacy teams to show their support for the campaign on social media, as well as signing the petition and contacting their local MPs about fair funding.
A further resource in the form of a window poster is being printed and will shortly be mailed out to all community pharmacies in England.
It is the latest output of a joint programme of work being coordinated by PSNC, CCA, AIM and the NPA.
It comes the same day the group launched a new public petition on the ’38 Degrees’ platform, which calls for immediate, fair and sustained funding to safeguard NHS pharmacy services.
In a joint statement, the national pharmacy organizations said: “A campaign of this kind benefits from having a central reference point like a website and a clear call to action like a petition. The website gives our supporters consistent messages, whilst the petition gives a persistent drum beat for the campaign.
The pharmacy bodies are determined to keep working together to secure fair funding in England. We’re also keeping up calls for a fully funded, nationwide ‘Pharmacy First’ service.”
Janet Morrison, PSNC Chief Executive, said: “Community pharmacies urgently need help, and through this campaign, we are spelling out that enough is enough. We are calling for fairer funding and a fully-funded ‘Pharmacy First’ service in England. The new campaign website will help us garner the support of the public, patients and the local communities, as well as influence Parliamentarians.
During the pandemic pharmacy teams stepped up to support their local communities and we should now be building on that vital contribution. Community pharmacy can be a key part of the solution for big NHS challenges such as GP access but without proper investment in this sector, pharmacies will be forced to reduce their opening hours, cut back on services or even worse, close permanently. Patients will be forced to find care, medicines and advice elsewhere at a time when the NHS is in crisis. We can’t let this happen.”
