What do you think of the pharmaceutical services in Wiltshire? Let us know

Residents across the county are being asked for their views on pharmaceutical services in Wiltshire.

Wiltshire Council's Health and Wellbeing Board is working with partners to update the current Wiltshire Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) which was published in 2018. The updated PNA will be a key tool to identifying what is needed at a local level to support the commissioning for pharmaceutical services until 2025.

To help support and feed into the process, residents are being for their views via a survey about pharmaceutical services.

The survey will help provide a picture of people's routine regarding pharmaceutical services and give them an opportunity to feedback on what works well for them, what might need to be worked on or improved, and overall what they want from these types of services.

The survey runs from 21 December until 18 January. Alternatively, some hard copies will be available soon at Wiltshire Council libraries and main hubs.

The results of the survey will contribute towards a draft Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment being produced, and this will be reviewed by the Health and Wellbeing Board in spring 2022.

If approved, a 60-day statutory consultation will take place. Responses to this consultation will be analysed, any changes required to the PNA will be considered, and final sign-off is expected by autumn 2022.

Cllr Richard Clewer, Chairman of the Wiltshire Health and Wellbeing Board, said:

Effective pharmaceutical services are an integrated part of our healthcare services and are vital to the health and wellbeing of the population. We expect this survey to give us a really good indication of what people need, and if the systems and services in place are working for them. The pandemic is likely to have had an impact on how people use and access these types of services, so this will help us form a picture of what people want and what the direction of travel is.

I thank everyone who takes the time out to complete the survey, as their feedback will really be at the heart of developing the Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment.