Abstract
This chapter concentrates on community pharmacy and General Practice pharmacist issues. Prescribing issues are covered in Chapter 7. The starting case highlights the anticholinergic burden of drugs and the role of community (and practice) pharmacists in identifying interactions.
The size of primary care prescribing (75% of NHS medications) means that this is a key carbon (as well as quality of life and cost) issue when estimates suggest that 10% of medications are unnecessary. The overlap between current good practice and sustainability agendas suggests the importance of weaving sustainability into stories about how to take medications. The role of pharmacists in clinical consultations and reviews, and their use of guides and use of technology to maximise their effectiveness is reviewed.
The importance of effective prescribing management systems for repeats or after-hospital care is highlighted. Centre for Sustainable Healthcare’s four principles of sustainable health care suggest how community pharmacies can be better at preventing illness (lifestyle inputs and green social prescribing), empowering patients (personalised care and sick-day rules, multi-compartment compliance aids, medicines disposal, and antimicrobial resistance), designing and delivering leaner service (paperless prescribing, stock management, collection checks) and offering low carbon alternatives (e.g., liquid medication alternatives).
Toolkits for greener pharmacy are introduced, and the chapter addresses the importance of pharmacy education programmes, as well as acknowledges the barriers to sustainable pharmacy practice.
The size of primary care prescribing (75% of NHS medications) means that this is a key carbon (as well as quality of life and cost) issue when estimates suggest that 10% of medications are unnecessary. The overlap between current good practice and sustainability agendas suggests the importance of weaving sustainability into stories about how to take medications. The role of pharmacists in clinical consultations and reviews, and their use of guides and use of technology to maximise their effectiveness is reviewed.
The importance of effective prescribing management systems for repeats or after-hospital care is highlighted. Centre for Sustainable Healthcare’s four principles of sustainable health care suggest how community pharmacies can be better at preventing illness (lifestyle inputs and green social prescribing), empowering patients (personalised care and sick-day rules, multi-compartment compliance aids, medicines disposal, and antimicrobial resistance), designing and delivering leaner service (paperless prescribing, stock management, collection checks) and offering low carbon alternatives (e.g., liquid medication alternatives).
Toolkits for greener pharmacy are introduced, and the chapter addresses the importance of pharmacy education programmes, as well as acknowledges the barriers to sustainable pharmacy practice.
Original language | English |
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Title of host publication | Environmentally sustainable primary care |
Editors | Matt Sawyer, Mike Tomson |
Publisher | Routledge |
Chapter | 5 |
ISBN (Electronic) | 9781003491583 |
ISBN (Print) | 9781032793573, 9781032793580 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 06 Nov 2024 |
Keywords
- Environment
- Sustainability
- primary care
- pharmacy