COVID-19 UPDATE: Community Pharmacy Deliveries by volunteers (Portsmouth)

CCG communication with Portsmouth pharmacies/GP practice managers

From the end of July 2020, as the COVID-19 shielding programme formally ceases, the temporary Portsmouth Prescription Support Service which was set up in conjunction with HIVE Portsmouth and Portsmouth City Council to support vulnerable people and assist pharmacies during the emergency phase of COVID-19 will change.  The existing co-ordinator, driver and escort team will return to their core roles, and we wish to thank them for their considerable commitment since the end of March 2020. We hope that the support has helped pharmacies during this difficult time, and that new ways of working in light of COVID-19 are now firmly embedded and working well.

There will be a small number of people that will continue to require support for a little longer, and the HIVE Portsmouth helpline, in conjunction with Portsmouth City Council, will remain open, with requests for help supported by a dedicated team of volunteers in locality groups across Portsmouth.  The triage process will be strengthened, both to help people put in place alternative sustainable solutions and to ensure that help can continue to be provided only where there is a genuine need for support. 

Original service details were shared in the following CPSC website news article:

• https://cpsc.org.uk/news/latest-cpsc-news/covid-19-community-pharmacy-deliveries-volunteers-portsmouth

Actions required by pharmacies:

If you have been advertising the Prescription Support Service to customers please can you update all staff of these changes. If you have customers who remain worried, especially regarding a potential second wave or local outbreak, please do remind them of all the options open to them for good prescription management, including a discussion with their GP about electronic repeat prescriptions, and making sure that they order repeat prescriptions in good time if they are relying on a family member or friend to pick them up for them.