CPNCommunity Pharmacy News – November 2015

Pharmacies ace flu serviceWith last year’s total surpassed a month after launch,

community pharmacy is off to a flying start

Check34 payment analysis webinar | Latest EPS news | PSNC Leadership Academy

Meet Nat Mitchell, pharmacist at Allison &

Sons Pharmacy, Cockermouth. With over

1,000 vaccinations already given this flu

season, he is the top community pharmacy

flu jabber in England (as of 28th October)

and wants to use his success to inspire other

pharmacists and their teams.

Following the announcement of the Flu

Vaccination Advanced Service, Nat and his

team quickly got to work preparing to

provide it to their patients. “This is our fourth year of doing it as

we’ve been involved in our local service for the last three years,”

says Nat. This experience was useful as he knew it was well within

his capabilities to provide the new national service and

recognised the need to promote it in the local media and on the

pharmacy’s Facebook page.

Nat knows his success is largely down to the efforts of the whole

team who supported the service when they “booked out October

for flu” and “bent over backwards to be available for patients”,

but also says it gets easier to recruit people each year because,

“you get better at it and people get to know about the service so

then it becomes a regular thing for them.”

Despite his frustrations over the delays in the necessary

paperwork, Nat is pleased the flu vaccination service is now

nationally commissioned as it “creates goodwill” amongst the

public and highlights the accessibility and convenience of

community pharmacy. “GPs make patients jump through hoops

like needing to come in for clinics, but we do it as a drop-in service

– even pensioners have other things to do!” says Nat.

He believes that the service is a great way to showcase

pharmacists’ talents and gives people a reason to visit their local

pharmacy. Nat encourages others to follow in his footsteps but

warns, “If you’re going to do it, then go ‘all in’! Financially it works

out well, as long as you put the effort in.”

Nat says: “Giving flu vaccinations might be out of some people’s

comfort zone but, even though prescriptions are still important,

this is something we need to embrace and you should have more

faith in yourself.” So Nat has laid down the gauntlet: are you ready

to pick it up?

If so email melinda.mabbutt@psnc.org.uk to share your story.

Think you have beaten Nat’s 1,000 flu jabs record?

Community pharmacy teams have aced

the national flu vaccination service this

year, electronically recording almost a

quarter of a million vaccinations in just the

first month.

As CPN went to press, an update towards

the end of October showed pharmacy

teams across the country had recorded

349,283 vaccinations on the

PharmOutcomes and Sonar electronic

recording systems. The actual number of

vaccinations delivered will be even higher

as some pharmacies are not using the

electronic systems.

Last year the total number of vaccines

administered in community pharmacies

under locally commissioned NHS services

was 232,388, so the figure so far is a

fantastic result.

NHS England has also provided information

on the number of pharmacies across the

country providing the service. As CPN went

to press 7,784 pharmacies had completed

the form on the NHS BSA website to inform

NHS England that they were starting to

provide the service. This represents 66.4%

of all community pharmacies on the

pharmaceutical list in England.

NHS England has also provided heat maps

showing the percentage of pharmacies

signed up by local NHS England teams and

Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs).

All the latest pharmacy flu vaccination

service statistics can be viewed at:

psnc.org.uk/flustats

PSNC Chief Executive Sue Sharpe said:

“As these figures show, the national flu

vaccination service has had a spectacular

first month and this really is a testament

to all the hard work put in by contractors,

pharmacy teams, LPCs and others.

The service has not been without

challenges, but once again we have shown

that even on short notice and with a

variety of obstacles, community pharmacy

can deliver.”

2 Community Pharmacy News – November 2015

services and commissioning The healThcare landscape lpcs

Pharmacies beat last year’s flu jabs record infirst monthThe national flu vaccination service gets off to a flying start with record

numbers of NHS flu jabs being recorded in community pharmacies.

Pharmacy flu jabs administered

Contractorssigned up toprovide theservice

2015/16 : 349,283

2014/15 : 232,388

Flu hero: Nat Mitchell

7,78466%

psnc.org.uk 3

funding and sTaTisTics conTracT and iT dispensing and supplypsnc’s work

Answered: Your top 5 queries

The team at PSNC has received a number of queries on the

Flu Vaccination Advanced Service since the service went live.

Below are some of the questions asked in recent weeks:

1Should pharmacy teams check with the patient’s GP surgery if the patient has already

had a flu vaccination?

In most cases the patient will be able to verify if they have received a flu vaccination at their

GP practice; however, if the patient is unsure then the GP practice should be contacted to

confirm whether they have already been vaccinated or not to prevent the risk of the patient

being vaccinated twice. This is especially important for patients who fall into vulnerable

groups such as those with dementia who may not remember if they have been vaccinated.

2 When I seek consent from NHS England to vaccinate patients in a care home, do I first

need to inform the patients’ GP practices that the pharmacy has been asked to

undertake the vaccinations?

Yes. The requirements in Annex C of the service specification include the need to contact

each patient’s GP practice prior to seeking consent from the NHS England local team. The

request form sent to NHS England requires the pharmacy contractor to declare that they

have undertaken this already, so it is imperative that this is undertaken before the declaration

is completed.

3 What should I do with completed patient questionnaires?

At the time of going to press NHS England had not yet confirmed the process by which

the data on completed patient questionnaires should be collated and reported. Therefore

please ensure the completed questionnaires are being kept together in a safe place ready for

when NHS England provide guidance on the submission process. Look out for details on the

PSNC website.

4 When do I need to notify the patient’s GP?

The service specification requires pharmacy contractors to send a notification to the

patient’s GP practice on the same day the vaccine is administered or on the following working

day. If you are using PharmOutcomes or Sonar for recording flu vaccinations and sending

electronic notifications of vaccinations to the patient’s GP practice make sure you select the

correct GP practice from the list within the IT system.

5 How do I claim payment for provision of the service?

Contractors must complete the claim form for the service at the end of each month and

submit this to the Pricing Authority with their script bundle submission. If you are printing out

your claim form from PharmOutcomes or Sonar make sure it is printed out so it is identical to

the form on the NHS BSA website. The form is scanned when it is sent to the Pricing Authority

so it needs to be the same size (A4) and the same orientation (portrait not landscape).

Resources round up

Dedicated webpage

PSNC’s webpage on the Flu

Vaccination Advanced Service is

the hub for all the resources linked

to the service. It includes a wealth

of information and support tools,

including our comprehensive FAQ

library. Why not take a look now?

psnc.org.uk/flu

Webinar

PSNC and the NPA held a joint

webinar to launch the service and,

if you missed it, you can now

access an on-demand version at:

psnc.org.uk/webinar

PSNC Briefings

A number of briefings have been

produced to help pharmacy teams,

including a poster showing the

process to follow, responsive lines

to use when faced with negativity

and template radio scripts for

promotion. These can all be found

on the Briefings Database

(psnc.org.uk/briefings)

Promotional materials

PSNC has developed a range of

patient communication materials

which are available from:

psnc.org.uk/flupatientcomms

Flu promotional campaigns get underwayNorth of Tyne LPC, Gateshead & South Tyneside LPC, Sunderland LPC, and County

Durham & Darlington LPC jointly funded a flu campaign which included local newspaper,

radio and bus adverts. North of Tyne LPC CEO Stephen Blackman said: “We went through

an advertising agency who made the process much easier. Their designer created some

mockups and after a few iterations we agreed the campaign style.”

Dudley LPC paid for a poster to be published in local freely-distributed papers. The LPC

also maintains a list of local pharmacies providing the service on their website. Dudley LPC

member Stephen Noble said: “I administered to two people today, with both of them saying

that it was the newspaper advertisement that encouraged them to visit a pharmacy.”

4 Community Pharmacy News – November 2015

psnc’s work funding and sTaTisTics conTracT and iT

Do you know how well yourprescription business is performing?PSNC’s upcoming webinar will guide pharmacy contractors through the

Check34 analysis tool. Sign up now.

Do you monitor your pharmacy’s financial performance? Do you know how to track your

pharmacy’s dispensing business and national services? And can you compare these to the

performance of other pharmacies in your area?

Check34, developed by PSNC, can help you to answer all of these questions and more, and in

our next webinar we’ll be showing you how.

The webinar, supported by the National Pharmacy Association (NPA), is being held on Monday

30th November at 7.30pm and will focus on PSNC’s Check34 tool which provides pharmacy

contractors with detailed information about their monthly Schedule of Payments (FP34).

Prescription experts from PSNC and the NPA will demonstrate how Check34 can be used to

better understand your prescription business, showing you how to get the most out of the

data in the system, and you’ll have the chance to ask them any questions you have.

So if you want to benchmark your pharmacy against local and national trends, track your

underlying financial performance, monitor your MUR figures, and much more, this webinar is

for you. Please visit psnc.org.uk/webinar for more information and details of how to register.

Missed the webinar?

Don’t worry, you will be able to watch a recording of the event on the PSNC website from a

few days after the event.

Webinar DetailsWhen is it?

Monday 30th November at

7.30pm

Who should sign up?

This webinar will be of most

interest to people who are using

or have signed up to use

Check34, although others

considering using Check34 may

also find it helpful. Find out

more about Check34 and how

you can sign up to use it at:

psnc.org.uk/check34

How do I register?

Please visit psnc.org.uk/webinar

ElectronicPrescriptionService

PSNC regularly receives questions from pharmacy owners and their

teams about the Electronic Prescription Service (EPS). In this round-

up we cover the latest news and resources from the past month.

EPS case studies now availableHSCIC has published new EPS case studies in which pharmacy

teams from across England share their views.

Packed with ideas and top tips, the case studies may be a useful

resource for contractors and pharmacy teams using EPS. For

example, a tech-savvy pharmacy manager at Birmingham’s

Chemist in Cleethorpes successfully embedded EPS into their

training and processes. Every new member of their team is

provided with a mentor, who is responsible for training and

shadowing them until EPS is fully understood.

All the EPS case studies, along with more top tips and handy

hints, are available from: psnc.org.uk/epstips

EPS nomination data publishedAs part of PSNC’s ongoing work to address the direction of

prescriptions, PSNC and the Health and Social Care Information

Centre (HSCIC) have begun publishing Electronic Prescription

Service (EPS) nomination data for all pharmacies.

This data has previously been available from HSCIC on request,

but PSNC asked HSCIC to publish it online on a weekly basis. PSNC

has also agreed with HSCIC to regularly publish nomination data

with additional analysis, including the number of active

nominations for each contractor, the change compared to the

previous week’s total, and EPS dispensing data.

Publication of the data will allow pharmacy contractors and LPCs

to identify any unusual patterns with the pharmacy’s EPS

nominations. Where this may be as a result of direction of

prescriptions, this weekly data will allow pharmacy contractors to

spot and take prompt action to investigate the cause.

The nomination data is available to view now at:

psnc.org.uk/nomreports

Then make sure your whole pharmacy team is signed up for yourlocal free EPS masterclass at: psnc.org.uk/epstraining

Looking for more support?

psnc.org.uk 5

services and commissioning The healThcare landscape lpcsdispensing and supply

Opening requirements during the upcomingholiday periodAre you aware of pharmacy opening requirements for Christmas Day,

Boxing Day and New Year's Day? Here we explain all.

Christmas Day, 25thDecember 2015

Christmas Day is a

traditional holiday

specifically mentioned

in the NHS (Pharmaceutical and Local

Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations. This

means that if your pharmacy ordinarily

would open on Friday (the day on which

Christmas Day falls this year), the hours

that the pharmacy would ordinarily be

open will, on this day, be treated as having

been open for the purpose of counting the

core contractual hours that week.

Therefore the pharmacy can close on that

day (unless it has been directed to open by

NHS England) without giving notice or

making an application.

Boxing Day, 26thDecember 2015

Boxing Day 2015 is

not a bank holiday as

it falls on a Saturday. If

your pharmacy ordinarily would open on

Saturday, then you are required to open for

your usual hours of business on 26th

December. The substitute day for Boxing

Day is Monday 28th December. The hours

that you would ordinarily be open on a

Monday, will be treated as having been

open for the purpose of counting the core

contractual hours that week. As such, your

pharmacy may close on Monday 28th

December 2015 and the hours you would

ordinarily have been open would count

towards core contractual hours that week.

New Year’s Day, 1st January 2016

New Year's Day

is a bank holiday.

This means that

if your pharmacy

ordinarily would

open on Friday

(the day on which

New Year’s Day falls next year) the hours

that the pharmacy would ordinarily be

open will, on this day, be treated as

having been open for the purpose of

counting the core contractual hours that

week. Therefore the pharmacy can close

on that day (unless it has been directed to

open by NHS England) without giving

notice or making an application.

Practice Payment changeCommunity pharmacy contractors should be aware of changes to the

levels of Practice Payment that are being made in the Drug Tariff from

November 2015. There will be an increase in the Practice Payment of

1.7p per item, from 54.7p to 56.4p.

The table below outlines the Practice Payments effective from 1st

November 2015 in England:

The holidays are approaching so it may be useful to remind yourself of the requirements in the community pharmacy terms of service

relating to opening hours.

Early closures prior to bank holidays

Sometimes pharmacy contractors may wish to close an hour or so earlier than usual on the day before a bank holiday – for example

Christmas Eve. If the hours that the contractor wishes to close early are supplementary hours, then notice of that intention had to be

given at least three months in advance. If the hours are core hours, then an application is needed, and the contractor would have to be

able to satisfy NHS England that there have been changes to the needs of people in the area, otherwise the application would be likely

to be refused. Unless you have notified NHS England of changes to your supplementary hours at least three months before the date or

applied successfully for amendment of hours, the contractor will not be able to close early.

Number ofitems permonth

Practice Payments for1st November 2015 to31st March 2016

Monthly PracticePayment (as it willappear in your FP34Schedule of Payment)

Up to 1,099 £250 £50

1,100 – 1,599 £2,407 £481.40

1,600 – 2,499 £3,369 £673.80

2,500+ 56.4p per item 56.4p per item

Pharmacy fined for breachof Data Protection ActAn internet pharmacy was fined £130,000 last

month by the Information Commissioner’s Office

(ICO) after selling customer names and addresses

through an online marketing list company.

The ICO said that the pharmacy had not informed

its customers that it intended to sell their details,

and the pharmacy was found to be in breach of

the Data Protection Act.

Community pharmacy contractors and their

teams will be well aware of the need to protect

patient confidentiality and data, but contractors

may wish to remind themselves of the details of

the Data Protection Act and of their Information

Governance requirements. More details are

available on PSNC’s Information Governance

page: psnc.org.uk/ig

Community pharmacy is faced with change and challenges,

uncertainty and potential as the NHS evolves. We need strong

LPC leadership now and in the future.

PSNC launched the PSNC Leadership Academy at this year’s LPC

Conference in Birmingham. The programme is designed to

develop future LPC leaders who may also be potential national

leaders as members of PSNC.

The first wave of the programme is a group of 12 LPC members

or officers selected for their leadership potential. The

programme is aimed at the leaders of tomorrow; those who

currently are not in established leadership positions, who want to

make a difference within community pharmacy and who seek to

play an increasingly active part in steering it into the future.

As a direct result of taking part in the Academy, developing

leaders will join and will build a national PSNC network of movers

and shakers in community pharmacy, establishing a forum for

mutual support, sharing good practice and mentoring long after

the programme has been completed.

PSNC will also keep in touch with successful applicants to track

leadership development and publicise some of their

achievements and success stories.

Full details of the PSNC Leadership Academy and how to apply

have been sent to LPCs. Any questions about the PSNC Leadership

Academy should be directed to mike.king@psnc.org.uk

6 Community Pharmacy News – November 2015

lpcs psnc’s work funding and sTaTisTics

Pharmacy back on web TV

David Bearman and Mark Stone of Devon LPC have made

another appearance on web TV channel Hiblio, this time to

talk about the pharmacy flu vaccination service. Hiblio was

created by the South Devon Healthcare NHS Foundation

Trust to bring local health and wellbeing information to a

wider audience. Watch the programme on-demand at:

bit.ly/1LFTK9r

Putting pharmacy in the spotlight

Hertfordshire LPC hosted an event to encourage the public

to think pharmacy first. Over 50 local healthcare

stakeholders attended for an afternoon of presentations,

exhibitions and networking. Attendees also watched a video

created by the LPC showcasing positive patient experiences

of community pharmacy.

PSNC Leadership AcademyPSNC launches new bespoke leadership development

programme for LPC members to nurture the talents of

the community pharmacy leaders of tomorrow.

What is involved?At the heart of the programme are two one-day development

meetings, with pre-meeting work, tasks and targets in-

between the two meetings and continued development work

after the second meeting. Participants can expect a good deal

of opportunity to discuss debate, reflect, exchange ideas and

practice, plan and experiment.

Integral to the programme is the opportunity to take part in

one-to-one coaching sessions with the programme leader

giving candidates the opportunity to discuss in confidence

their progress as developing leaders and to benefit from the

coaching of a leadership expert.

Applying to join the PSNC Leadership Academy

Candidates apply to become part of the programme. We are

looking for applicants who are LPC members or officers who

can demonstrate leadership potential and have:

• shown initiative with a drive and interest to lead;

• a strategic outlook;

• the ability to rise to challenges and lead change; and

• an open mind with the character and experience in

community pharmacy to move into a leadership role.

Candidates will also need to be available for both development

meeting days on 3rd March and 19th April 2016. The days will

run from 10am to 4.30pm and both will be held in London.

News from the LPCs

psnc.org.uk 7

dispensing and supply services and commissioning The healThcare landscapeconTracT and iT

PSNC regularly receives questions from LPCs and pharmacy

contractors about what is going on in the wider health and care

landscape beyond community pharmacy. In this round-up we

cover the latest news from the past month.

Over a quarter ofGP appointmentsare potentiallyavoidable

The cost to the NHS of long-term conditions will reach £1.2bnby 2025

Prime Minister pledges 7-day GP servicesby 2020

Stay Well This Winter campaign launched

Public Health England (PHE) and NHS England have launched a

major campaign to help people Stay Well this Winter

(nhs.uk/staywell). The campaign will encourage people who are

at risk of infection and complications from flu to get vaccinated,

give advice on how to avoid common illness, and remind the

public to get help from their pharmacist when they first begin to

feel unwell.

More than 25% of GP appointments potentially avoidable

NHS Alliance and the Primary Care Foundation have published

Making Time in General Practice (dld.bz/dXGQ4), which argues

that 27% of GP appointments could be avoided if there was more

coordinated working between GP and hospitals, wider use of

other primary care staff, better use of technology to streamline

administrative burdens, and wider system changes.

The report stated that 5.5% of GP appointments could have been

managed by community pharmacy or the patient could have been

given support to deal with the problem through self-care.

HSCIC produces smoking infographic poster

The Health and Social Care Information Centre (HSCIC) have

published their latest statistics on smoking in the form of a

downloadable infographics poster.

The poster is available on the HSCIC website (dld.bz/dXGQH).

Increase in life threatening conditions over next decade

Analysis by the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP)

shows that one million more people will be living with more than

one serious long-term, life threatening condition by 2025, which

will cost general practice in the NHS up to £1.2bn.

GP services will be 7-days a week by 2020

Details of a new, voluntary contract for GPs to deliver 7-day care

for all patients by 2020 have been announced by Prime Minister

David Cameron. The new contract, to be launched in April 2017,

will see GP practices integrated with community nurses and

other health professionals, to provide more seamless, person-

centred care for patients.

PSNC’s Pharmacy 5 Point Forward Plan, which sets out five key

services it believes the NHS should commission from community

pharmacies, is continuing to gain support.

In a fringe event at the Conservative Party Conference last month

PSNC shared the plan with chair Ben Gummer, who is the minister

with responsibility for patient safety and hospitals. Mr Gummer

said the plan included some good ideas, and the event included a

useful discussion with other healthcare professionals,

commissioners and local councillors. Participants in particular

identified the need for Local Authorities to make better use of

community pharmacy.

Additionally, at last month's Pharmacy Show, pharmacy minister

Alistair Burt set out his support for some of the services mentioned

in the plan. In particular he backed community pharmacy support

for people with long-term conditions such as asthma to help them

to manage their treatment, and he highlighted a successful urgent

supply of medicines service.

However, although they backed an extended clinical role for

community pharmacy, the minister and other speakers also warned

that there would be

challenges ahead.

NHS England’s deputy

chief pharmaceutical

officer Bruce Warner

warned that pharmacy

would, like all other

parts of the health

service, come under

increased financial scrutiny in the future and need to find

efficiencies. And community pharmacy was advised to ensure that

it is playing its part and getting involved in the many projects

around the country that are working to transform local care.

Further support for PSNC services plan

Find out more aboutPSNC's Pharmacy 5 PointForward Plan and theevidence for the serviceswithin it at:psnc.org.uk/5pointplan

8 Community Pharmacy News – November 2015

services and commissioning The healThcare landscape lpcs

In this section of Community Pharmacy News we have highlighted some keynotices for you and your team to be aware of in the coming weeks and months.

Pharmacy notice board

Antibiotic awareness toolkitPublic Health England (PHE) has published a toolkit to support theAntibiotic Guardian campaign and local initiatives.The first World Antibiotic Awareness Week (WAAW) took place from16th to 22nd November and European Antibiotic Awareness Day (EAAD), an annual public health initiativeaimed at encouraging responsible use of antibiotics, was held on 18th November.Download the toolkit and find out more about how you and your team can get involved at: dld.bz/dYhaa

Acute kidney injury campaignThe Centre for PharmacyPostgraduate Education(CPPE) and the Think Kidneysprogramme from the RenalRegistry have sent out acute kidney injurycampaign packs to all registeredpharmacy professionals in England.More information, including details of thesix challenges that form part of CPPE’slearning campaign, can be found at:dld.bz/dYhaXCPPE also has a dedicated webpage forthe campaign (cppe.ac.uk/aki), which willbe updated regularly.

Epilepsy MURConsultation BriefPSNC and the EpilepsySociety have produced aConsultation Brief to assistpharmacists when carrying out Medicines

Use Reviews (MURs) for patients with

epilepsy who are taking anti-epileptic

drugs (AEDs). Read and download the

Consultation Brief from: dld.bz/dYx95

Carers and the flu jabCarers are included in the group of patients eligible foran NHS flu vaccination under the national flu service but itcan be difficult to identify who is a carer.

The term ‘carer’ is sometimes confused with a careworker or care assistant; however, the difference isthat a carer is unpaid whereas a care worker orcare assistant is paid for looking after someone.

PSNC has worked with Carers Trust to produceresources to assist pharmacy teams in identifyingcarers who may be eligible for a flu vaccination.These can be found at: dld.bz/dY76w

The average pharmacy in England carried out 24 MURs and six NMS consultations in July. How many did you do? Find out at check34.com

Understand your NHS business better with Check34Not yet got an account? Email check34admin@psnc.org.uk for more information.

GPhC premises renewalContractors are reminded that General PharmaceuticalCouncil (GPhC) premises renewals are due on a rolling12 month basis with two renewal cycles per month.All pharmacy premises are now processed via theGPhC’s web based system. To avoid being unable to provide NHS services andincurring additional costs following non-renewal, contractors may wish to diarisetheir renewal date.Find out more about the premises renewalprocess at: dld.bz/dYhat

psnc.org.uk 9

funding and sTaTisTics conTracT and iT dispensing and supplypsnc’s work

Pharmacy teams may wish to check PSNC’s ‘Dispensing on an FP10 database’ (available at: psnc.org.uk/FP10database) for more information on

whether an item can be dispensed on an FP10, and we have listed some products below that we have recently received queries about.

Product Is the item Does it Is it Can it be Additional listed in the have a ‘CE’ in the dispensed information Drug Tariff? mark? blacklist? on an FP10?

Can it be dispensed on an FP10?

Accu-Chek® Aviva Blood

Glucose Meter System

Advantage Plus testing

strips

Helicobacter Test INFAI

Jelonet dressing

5cm x 5cm

No

No

No

No

n/a

n/a

No

n/a

Yes

Yes

No

Yes

No

No

Yes

No

This item is a medical device (CE

marked) and is not listed in Part

IX of the Drug Tariff.

This item is a medical device and

is no longer listed in Part IX of

the Drug Tariff.

This item is not listed in Part

XVIIIA (the ‘blacklist’) of the

Drug Tariff and it is not a

medical device.

This item is a medical device and

is not listed in Part IX of the

Drug Tariff.

Note: only the sizes that are

listed in IXA of the Drug Tariff

are allowed.

Part VIIIB change to Chloralhydrate listing

Chloral hydrate 500mg/5ml oral solution

has been added to Part VIIIB of the

November Drug Tariff and the listing for

the Chloral mixture has been removed in

line with the BP nomenclature change.

Please note that any prescription for

Chloral hydrate 500mg/5ml mixture will be

reimbursed at the Part VIIIB listed price for

the oral solution as of the November

prescription bundle.

Did you know the listing forBenzoyl peroxide 5% /Clindamycin 1% gel has changed?

The pack sizes 25g and 50g of Benzoyl

peroxide 5% / Clindamycin 1% gel have

been removed from the Drug Tariff and

replaced with 30g and 60g.

For generically written prescriptions, you

will be paid based on the Drug Tariff listed

price, but, for prescriptions written by

brand, ensure you dispense the pack size

written on the prescription and endorse it.

Drug Tariff listing changesChanges to the Drug Tariff impact on

reimbursement so it's important to take

note when amendments are made to

product listings. Below are some

changes which took effect recently.

NHSBSA’s Hints & TipsNHS Prescription Services (part

of NHSBSA) produces a quarterly

newsletter called Hints & Tips for

dispensing contractors. The

latest edition (Issue 21) contains

some really useful information

such as:

• information on claiming out of

pocket expenses (OOP/XP);

• an outline of the flu

vaccination service;

• information on free EPS

masterclass training; and

• referred back (returned) items

in EPS Release 2 explained

with examples.

All published editions of the

Hints & Tips newsletter can be

found on the Prescription

Services website:

www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/3191.aspx

All details correct at time of printing.

No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of PSNC.

Produced for PSNC by Communications International Group. ©. PSNC.

Colour repro and printing by Truprint Media, Margate.

The publishers accept no responsibility for any statement made in signed contributions or

in those reproduced from any other source.

Communications International Group

Linen Hall, 162-168 Regent Street, London W1B 5TB

Tel: 020 7434 1530 Fax: 020 7437 0915

Distributedfor PSNC by:

dispensing and supply services and commissioning The healThcare landscape

PSNC websiteFor up to date information and news on community pharmacy issues, visit the PSNC website at psnc.org.uk

PSNC Community Pharmacy News is published by:The Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee, Times House, 5 Bravingtons Walk, London N1 9AWCommunity Pharmacy News is edited by:Melinda Mabbutt who can be contacted at the above address or by email at: mmabbutt@psnc.org.uk © PSNCPSNC Office: 0844 381 4180 or 0203 122 0810

Drug Tariff Watch

Part VIIIA additions

Key: SC Special Container

SLS Selected List Scheme

• Atomoxetine 4mg/1ml oral solution

sugar free (300ml (3x SC 100ml))

Category C - Strattera

• Avanafil 100mg tablets SLS (4) and (8)

Category C - Spedra

• Avanafil 200mg tablets SLS (4) and (8)

Category C - Spedra

• Avanafil 50mg tablets SLS (4) and (8)

Category C - Spedra

• Carbocisteine 750mg/10ml oral solution

10ml sachets sugar free (15) Category C -

Intrapharm Laboratories Ltd

• Ciclosporin 0.1% eye drops 0.3ml unit

dose (30) Category C - Ikervis

• Naloxegol 12.5mg tablets (30) and 25mg

tablets (30) Category C - Moventig

• Tiotropium bromide 2.5micrograms/dose

/ Olodaterol 2.5micrograms/dose

solution for inhalation cartridge with

device CFC free SC (60–dose) Category C

- Spiolto Respimat

Part VIIIA amendments

• Budesonide 1mg/2ml nebuliser liquid

unit dose vials (20) is changing to

Category A

• Budesonide 500micrograms/2ml

nebuliser liquid unit dose vials (20) is

changing to Category A

• Disulfiram 200mg tablets (50) is changing

to Category A

• Salbutamol 2.5mg/2.5ml nebuliser liquid

unit dose vials (20) is changing to

Category A

• Salbutamol 5mg/2.5ml nebuliser liquid

unit dose vials (20) is changing to

Category A

Part VIIIA deletions

If a medicinal product has been removed

from Part VIIIA and has no other pack sizes

listed, it can continue to be dispensed, but

it will need to be endorsed fully (i.e. brand

or supplier name from whom the product

was purchased and the pack size from

which the item was dispensed) and price

paid in future.

• Acetic acid 33% liquid (500ml) —

Category C— JM Loveridge Ltd

• Ammonia solution aromatic (500ml) —

Category C— JM Loveridge Ltd

• Chloral hydrate crystals (100g) —

Category C— JM Loveridge Ltd

• Co-danthramer 25mg/200mg capsules

(60) —Category C— A A H

Pharmaceuticals Ltd

• Oxybutynin 2.5mg/5ml oral solution

(150ml) —Category C— Ditropan elixir

Part IX Deletions

It is important to take careful note of removals from Part IX because if you dispense a deleted product, prescriptions will be returned

as disallowed and therefore payment will not be made for dispensing the item.

Product name and description Sizes affected Product code

Hospicrepe 229 5cm, 7.5cm, 10cm, and 15cm n/a

UltraSmooth Hydrophilic Catheter (Peak Medical Ltd) – Male 8-18Ch gauge US4008-US4018

UltraSmooth Hydrophilic Catheter (Peak Medical Ltd) – Female 8-18Ch gauge US1808-US1818

UltraSmooth Hydrophilic Catheter (Peak Medical Ltd) – Paediatric 6-10Ch gauge US3006-US3010

Sorbsan Silver Plus SA (with adhesive border) 11.5cm x 14cm n/a

Vacutex 15cm x 20cm and 20cm x 20cm n/a

Cavi-Care 20g n/a

Cilguard Overlap 10cm x 10cm, 15cm x 15cm, 20cm x 10cm, and 20cmx 20cm

n/a

Cilguard Standard 10cm x 10cm, 15cm x 15cm, 20cm x 10cm, 20cm x20cm, 20cm x 50cm, and 10cm x 60cm

n/a

Cilguard Border 10cm x 10cm, 15cm x 15cm, 20cm x 10cm, 20cm x20cm, and 20cm x 50cm

n/a

XLR8 Y Connector n/a n/a

X XLR8 Dressing Kit with port Small, Medium, and Large n/a

XLR8 Canister 200ml, 400ml, and 600ml n/a

Unilet Eco (Owen Mumford Ltd) 0.375mm/28 gauge, 200 pack only n/a

Replacement Filter elements for series 366 drainable bags (Hollister Ltd) n/a 7766

LBF No Sting Barrier Film Spray (CliniMed Ltd) 30ml and 50ml 3826-3827

Secura Cleanser (Smith & Nephew Healthcare Ltd) 236ml 59446825

During dispensing, it is important to note which products are listed in the Drug Tariff as well as which category products are entering

into and the pack sizes being included in these entries. This is because reimbursement will be based on this classification and its

endorsement requirements. Incorrect endorsement can lead to incorrect or delay in payment.

Below is a quick summary of some the changes due to take place from 1st December 2015.