Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment for Wiltshire approved by Health and Wellbeing Board

Following a statutory consultation involving key stakeholders, an updated Wiltshire Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) has been published by Wiltshire's Health and Wellbeing Board.

Every Health and Wellbeing Board has a legal responsibility to publish an up-to-date statement of the needs for pharmaceutical services of the population in its area, known as the Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment. This acts as a key tool to identifying what is needed at a local level and gaps in provision to support the commissioning for pharmaceutical services. To help update the plan a number of stakeholders were engaged with, including Wiltshire NHS providers, community pharmacies, GP surgeries and the public.

Pharmaceutical services is a collective term for a range of services commissioned by NHS England and NHS Improvement to supply drugs, medicines and listed appliances ordered via NHS prescriptions to individuals. Pharmaceutical services can include dispensing practices, dispensing appliance contractors, distance selling pharmacies and community pharmacies.  

Wiltshire residents had previously been asked to provide their normal routines with regard to accessing pharmaceutical services which were then used to draft a version of the PNA by the Health and Wellbeing Board. The updated PNA was published in September 2022 and will be used until 2025.

Cllr Richard Clewer, Chairman of the Wiltshire Health and Wellbeing Board, said: Following feedback from both the public and key stakeholders, we are pleased to publish the new Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment. We can use the approved document to support our NHS colleagues to shape the current and future pharmaceutical service provisions locally, which will meet the needs of the local community - a key priority for us as a Health and Wellbeing Board.

Thanks to everyone who has taken part in both the public survey and the stakeholder consultation to help us finalise the document.

People can find further details and read the approved Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment at Pharmaceutical needs assessment 2022 - Wiltshire Council.