Ellie Philpotts

London

Health Journalist at Freelance

Writer and Content Editor at RCN Bulletin

Award-winning journo. Editor @theRCN half the week, freelance health writer, speaker and charity campaigner the rest✍️ Open to commissions, tips and chats!

Featured in: Favicon

gponline.com Favicon

telegraph.co.uk Favicon

metro.co.uk Favicon

walesonline.co.uk Favicon

huffingtonpost.co.uk Favicon

timeshighereducation.com Favicon

pulsetoday.co.uk Favicon

nursinginpractice.com Favicon

healthcareleadernews.com Favicon

thepharmacist.co.uk + 6 more

Articles

Urgent reform needed to fulfil Pharmacy First potential, say pharmacy and GP leaders

3 days ago | pharmaceutical-journal.com | Ellie Philpotts

Local pharmaceutical committees (LPCs) and local medical committees (LMCs) have written to the health secretary Wes Streeting urging the government to strengthen Pharmacy First. In a joint letter sent on 28 May 2025 and seen exclusively by The Pharmaceutical Journal, pharmacy and GP representatives from across London asked Streeting to “improve Pharmacy First for better NHS access and reduced pressure”.
Five percent of the public find community pharmacies 'difficult' to access, survey finds

2 weeks ago | pharmaceutical-journal.com | Ellie Philpotts

Community pharmacies were the most easily accessible healthcare services during winter 2024, a survey conducted by Community Pharmacy England (CPE) has found. Results of a YouGov survey, published on 20 May 2025, found that 5% of survey respondents said community pharmacies were “difficult” to access, compared with 37% of respondents who said general practice was “difficult” to access.
Next Welsh government urged to agree new community pharmacy funding formula

1 month ago | pharmaceutical-journal.com | Ellie Philpotts

Community Pharmacy Wales (CPW) has called on the next Welsh government to agree to a new community pharmacy funding formula ahead of the May 2026 Senedd elections. In its manifesto for 2026, published on 7 May 2025, CPW said the next Welsh government should “take into account both increased costs and growth in clinical service activity” to ensure a sustainable and viable network to support the successful delivery and ambitions of ‘Presgripsiwn newydd — a new prescription‘.
C. difficile cases increase by one-third over three years, government data show

1 month ago | pharmaceutical-journal.com | Ellie Philpotts

Clostridioides difficile infections (CDIs) in England have increased by one-third over three years, according to data published by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). In a research and analysis paper, published on 1 May 2025, the UKHSA revealed that CDI cases increased by 33% between the 2020/2021 and 2023/2024 financial years.
Chief pharmacists call for medicines leadership to be 'fundamental component' of strategic commissioning system

1 month ago | pharmaceutical-journal.com | Ellie Philpotts

Integrated care board (ICB) chief pharmacists across England have written to NHS England, calling for medicines leadership to be a “fundamental component” of an overhauled ICB system. In a joint letter sent on 15 April 2025, four ICB chief pharmacists urged senior NHS England executives to work with pharmacists as strategic commissioning of NHS services in England is developed.
Government ends programme to tackle drug deaths and drug-related offending

1 month ago | pharmaceutical-journal.com | Ellie Philpotts

A Home Office-led programme designed to reduce drugs deaths and drug-related offending has been closed after less than five years in operation. In a guidance document, updated on 7 April 2025, the government said that Project ‘ADDER’ (Addiction, Diversion, Disruption, Enforcement and Recovery) ended on 31 March 2025.
Regulators issue warning over prescription-only weight-loss drug advertisements

1 month ago | pharmaceutical-journal.com | Medicines regulation |Ellie Philpotts

Medical and pharmacy regulators have published an enforcement notice warning that advertisements for named prescription-only medicines (POMs) for weight-management are prohibited. The notice was published jointly by the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) on 11 April 2025.
Patients involved in design of fewer than one-fifth of published trials, research shows

1 month ago | pharmaceutical-journal.com | Ellie Philpotts

Research has revealed that patients were involved in the planning stages of just 18% of published clinical trials across several disease areas. The study, published in The BMJ on 10 April 2025, analysed the patient and public involvement — in how research is designed, conducted and disseminated — of 360 published articles reporting on randomised controlled trials and 299 respective protocols.
NICE approves first NHS treatment for advanced blood cancer

2 months ago | pharmaceutical-journal.com | Ellie Philpotts

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has recommended brentuximab vedotin (Adcetris; Takeda), in combination with other chemotherapy drugs, as the first NHS treatment for untreated late-stage classical Hodgkin lymphoma.
Young cancer survivors on the impact of cancer fakers

2 months ago | inspirethemind.org | Ellie Philpotts

A hard pill to swallowUpon being confirmed to have cancer, you realise that so much of it is physical. Which is a hard pill to swallow, because you’d battled so much of it in private before reaching the point of diagnosis. Maybe you’d batted off your symptoms, blaming them on your young age or other easily explainable factors, be it a winter virus or the menopause. Maybe you’d battled to be taken seriously by doctors, who wouldn’t scan you until you’d come back time and time again.