Health drive up in smoke as pharmacy scheme hits snags

Published on Monday 22 June 2009 10:04

A STRATEGY to give quitting smokers one-to-one help through pharmacies has been hit after it emerged the service is well behind schedule on its targets.

Health chiefs hoped to move much of the smoking cessation services into pharmacies to make it more accessible for smokers and to ease the strain on GPs.

They wanted 40 per cent of successful quits to be made through the Lothians' pharmacies, but latest statistics have shown this is currently only at 8 per cent.

The health board has now vowed to provide extra training for staff in a bid to up the figures as it attempts to convince 11,000 people in the Lothians to quit over the next two years.

Presenting the findings to NHS Lothian board members, lead officers Mike Massarro-Mallinson and Fiona Hume explained that the switch had so far not reached expectations.

They said: "It had been anticipated that pharmacies would deliver 40 per cent of the target; to date they have only contributed 8 per cent of successful outcomes achieved.

"Additional training is being provided for community pharmacy staff to improve their skills in smoking cessation support.

"There is also a significant advertising campaign signposting the pharmacy scheme underway."

The Evening News revealed in January how 180 community pharmacies would begin to take on smokers from the area's doctors.

Pharmacists draw up a 12-week action plan following an interview with the patient, and also have options which include prescribing nicotine replacement therapy, and referring people onto specialist NHS services for additional support.

The idea was designed to target busy people who felt that they did not have time to go into a GP surgery, but might be able to pop in to their high street pharmacy.

NHS Scotland recently instructed local health chiefs to get 11,000 successful quitters by 2011. As a result, a series of measures has been outlined to make it happen, such as one-to-one help for those quitters who are a month into kicking their habit, whereas previously many were left to fend for themselves at a time experts identify as key.

And despite the poor return from pharmacies, 44 per cent more people did attempt to stop smoking in the Lothians last year than in 2007 with the help of medics.

A pilot scheme is also ongoing which sees city chemists offer impromptu check-ups for harassed commuters, one of many additional powers that have been given to pharmacies in the past few years.

That was led to a swell in pharmacy applications in the city, with 20 new ones going in over the past two years.