Agenda item

The Board considered a report of the Director of Public Health concerning the Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) for Sheffield 2015-18. The Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment provided a framework to allow the strategic development and commissioning of pharmaceutical services to help meet the needs of the local population. The report provided an introduction to the PNA and presented key findings and the draft PNA was appended to the report.

Dr Jeremy Wight, the Director of Public Health, presented the report. The duty to produce a PNA was placed on Health and Wellbeing Boards by the Health and Social Care Act 2012. The first Assessment was to be produced by 1^st April 2015 and in accordance with the National Health Service (NHS) (Pharmaceutical Services and Local Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2013.

The PNA concluded that Sheffield was well served by pharmacies and dispensing doctors. There were good links with other NHS services. Nonetheless, it was recognised that there was potential to develop this much further, particularly in the context of developing integrated primary care services. Local pharmacies were already contributing extensively to raising awareness and understanding of health risks.

There was likely to be increased demographic and cost pressures from patients with long-term conditions and the PNA acknowledged pharmacy’s continuing role in helping to meet that need. It found that further development of the public health role of pharmacy and commissioning of relevant services could secure additional improvements in health. Known future other developments were unlikely to generate a significant level of need or demand for additional pharmaceutical provision over the next 5 years.

A question was whether there were aspects of pharmacy provision of which more could be made such as developing a role in contributing to messages about the help and support which was available to people.

Resolved: that theHealth and Wellbeing Board, having sought assurances that the PNA has been produced in line with the 2013 regulations; that relevant needs and services have been assessed and gaps, as appropriate, identified; and the PNA is on track to be published by 1 April 2015, notes that the final version of the Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment will be submitted to the Board for approval in March 2015.