The NHS could save billions of pounds through an expansion of pharmacy services that help patients use their medicines effectively, according to new research.
The study found a potential £1.2 billion in NHS savings
The study, carried out by the York Health Economics Consortium at the University of York for the National Pharmacy Association (NPA), found a potential £1.2 billion in NHS savings and calculated an additional £2.7 billion in value from improved health outcomes.
Savings
The team analysed the possible economic benefits of expanding the reach of current NHS services and the potential gain from commissioning new pharmaceutical care services, based on evidence from published literature.
Savings were identified from helping people stay healthier, avoiding unnecessary hospital admissions and also deprescribing medicines that are no longer required.
Full use of one service alone – the NHS Discharge Medicines Service - could relieve pressure on wards by releasing nearly an extra million days currently spent in hospital beds.
Prescribing reviews for people taking 10 or more medicines could result in net savings of nearly £620 million.
Targeted
Offering Structured Medication Reviews in community pharmacy has the potential to save a large amount of GP practice time and reduce NHS costs, particularly if this is targeted at people currently taking potentially addictive medicines - a population estimated to be over six million with only 16% receiving an SMR in 2023/24.
The data shows potential benefits for patients equivalent to over 100,000 years of additional healthy life per annum – so called 'Quality Adjusted Life Years'.
The researchers considered the economic impact of a variety of medicines optimisation support delivered by pharmacists, including educational interventions, monitoring, deprescribing, medication review, pain assessment and others.
Lead researcher for the project at York Health Economics Consortium, Nick Hex, said: "Medicines are a considerable cost to the health system, so it is vital that their use is optimised.
"Our report shows that more investment in community pharmacist support could result in very substantial benefits to patients and better value for money for the NHS."
Investment
NPA Chief Executive, Henry Gregg, said: "This compelling new report shows how better patient outcomes could be achieved for a reduced overall cost, given investment in medicines services provided by local pharmacies.
"This is a win-win-win. The public purse gains from a substantial return on investment, the NHS gains because we can relieve pressure on hospital beds and, above all, patients enjoy longer, healthier lives.
"As accessible medicines experts, community pharmacists are already the go-to healthcare professionals for millions of people who want support getting the best, safe use from medicines.
"Patients using our medicines advice services already benefit from reduced pain, reduced hospital length of stay and improved overall physical and mental wellbeing.
"But we can go much further if properly funded, to help patients and taxpayers. I think of this as a kind of 'medicines reset' for a population that isn't currently getting best use from their prescribed medicines.
"Ambitious pharmaceutical care that transforms people's experience of medicines should sit right at the heart of our next community pharmacy contract and the government's wider plans to implement its 10-year Health Plan."
