Joanna Robertson

London

Award-winning health journalist ✍️Senior Reporter @Pharmacist_News 📧[email protected] 📲@joanna_journals elsewhere 🎓@cityjournalism 🤔RTs≠endorsement

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Articles

Pharmacy First passes 5 million consultations landmark

1 week ago | pharmaceutical-journal.com | Joanna Robertson

Community pharmacies in England have seen more than 5 million patients under the Pharmacy First scheme since it began in January 2024, NHS Business Services Authority data show. According to data analysed by The Pharmaceutical Journal, between the end of January 2024 — when the service was introduced — and the end of February 2025, pharmacies delivered around 5.4 million Pharmacy First consultations.
Weight-loss medication: 'Ambition' to explore through community pharmacy says CPhO

1 month ago | thepharmacist.co.uk | Joanna Robertson

The provision of weight-loss medication in NHS primary care will be delivered through general practice in the first instance, but there is an ‘ambition’ to explore other routes of delivery, England’s chief pharmaceutical officer (CPhO) has said. His comments follow media reports last week that suggested the government might pilot NHS delivery of weight-loss drugs through community pharmacies.
CPE 'open to discussing' NHS weight-loss jabs through pharmacies

1 month ago | thepharmacist.co.uk | Joanna Robertson

Community Pharmacy England (CPE) has said it is 'open to discussing' how weight-loss injections could be delivered through community pharmacies on the NHS, following rumoured plans reported in the national media. Reports in The Times, The Telegraph and the Daily Mail today suggest that the approach may be piloted by the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI).
BREAKING: Hub and spoke changes expected to come into force in October

1 month ago | thepharmacist.co.uk | Joanna Robertson

Legislation to allow hub and spoke dispensing between different legal entities is expected to come into force in October, Community Pharmacy England (CPE) has confirmed. The relevant amendments to the Human Medicines Regulations will be effective from 1 October 2025, pending Parliament approval. Related Article: What could Kinnock's vision for pharmacy 'reform' look like?
GPNs in Scotland must wait for review body before pay news

1 month ago | nursinginpractice.com | Megan Ford |Joanna Robertson

General practice nurses (GPNs) in Scotland will have to wait for the recommendations of the Review Body on Doctors and Dentists Remuneration (DDRB) and the government’s subsequent response before any pay increase can be implemented. This is despite NHS nurses in Scotland receiving an 8% two-year pay offer from the Scottish Government earlier this week.
What could Kinnock's vision for pharmacy 'reform' look like?

1 month ago | thepharmacist.co.uk | Joanna Robertson

Reform to the community pharmacy sector must come alongside investment, the pharmacy minister Stephen Kinnock has said. But what could this look like in practice? Ahead of the £3.073bn deal for the sector announced last week, Mr Kinnock told press: 'With all investment, reform has to come together with investment'.
NHS bricks-and-mortar pharmacies drop below 10,000 in England

1 month ago | healthcareleadernews.com | Joanna Robertson |Beth Gault

The number of bricks and mortar community pharmacies providing NHS services in England has dropped to 9,999, the latest figures from the NHS Business Services Authority have revealed. Of those, 4,910 were single or small groups of independents (1-5 pharmacies), 1,807 were part of medium-sized groups (6-99 pharmacies), and 3,282 were part of large groups (100+ pharmacies).
McCloud NHS pensioners face financial disadvantage due to admin delays

2 months ago | thepharmacist.co.uk | Joanna Robertson

General practice staff who are members of the NHS pension and affected by the McCloud case face losing out financially because of delays in receiving key paperwork, experts have said. Just under 400,000 members of the pension scheme – all of whom have already retired – were due to receive remediable service statements (RSS), that provide vital information about their pension benefits by April 1.
Community pharmacies get £3bn deal for 2025/26

2 months ago | healthcareleadernews.com | Joanna Robertson |Beth Gault

Community Pharmacy England has agreed a £3.073 billion Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework, in a new deal for the sector for 2025/26. A further £215 million will be available for contractors to earn through Pharmacy First, blood pressure and contraception services, while a national emergency hormonal contraception service has been commissioned.
CPCF: Is the new community pharmacy funding deal enough?

2 months ago | thepharmacist.co.uk | Joanna Robertson

The new community pharmacy funding deal falls short of the costs outlined in the economic review of community pharmacy, but is 'a significant step in the right direction', Community Pharmacy England has said. Pharmacy minister Stephen Kinnock told press that he recognised the pressures that pharmacy contractors were under and said the government was 'committed to supporting the sector'. But he stressed that 'reform has to come together with investment'.