Archives: Contractor Email

Dear Colleague
I would like to offer my sincere thanks to all pharmacy teams who participated in the Community Pharmacy ‘Big Jab Weekend‘. Over 11,000 COVID-19 vaccinations were administered by community pharmacy across Friday, Saturday and Sunday. This is a phenomenal achievement in only three days! Community pharmacy has once again demonstrated its ability to deliver the vaccination programme for Northern Ireland. Massive congratulations to all involved! 

Community pharmacy’s hard-work and unyielding commitment to their local communities has been a long running characteristic of the network, and this has not gone unnoticed.  On Saturday, 5 December 2021, the community pharmacy workforce received the ‘Roll of Honour’ award, at the prestigious Aisling Awards, in recognition of their continued dedication to patient care throughout the past twelve months.  

This is a wonderful endorsement of the profession and again, I would like to thank community pharmacists and their teams across the network for all their hard work and commitment. 

Further information relating to the ‘Roll of Honour’ award is available HERE.

Thank you once again to you and your teams and please do not hesitate to contact CPNI Office on 028 9069 0444 for further advice or support.

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF
GERARD GREENE
Chief Executive

This update contains important information for community pharmacy teams, including details of the ongoing response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

BSO ALERTS 

CPNI ALERTS 

HSCB ALERTS 

Please bring this to the attention of your pharmacy team(s).
Pharmacy team(s) can keep updated via CPNI’s Contractor Calendar and Contractor Emails.

Or report medicine shortages, pricing and staffing issues via the CPNI’s Medicine Shortage Reporter or Situation Reporter.

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF 
DR. GARETH C. GILVARY
Governance & Support Pharmacist
Dear Colleague
Please see attached correspondence from Kathryn Turner, Pharmacy Lead, HSCB. 

In summary, additional funding is available for community pharmacies to carry out dedicated COVID-19 vaccination clinics for the Community Pharmacy ‘Big Jab Weekend’ on 4-5 December 2021. The following options are available:
Provide clinic(s) in current Pharmacy premises outside of normal commercial opening hours.
Provide clinic(s) at an off-site location (non-pharmacy) premises at any time.

Funding of £200 per eligible vaccination clinic is available.

If you wish to claim this funding, please complete the attached claim form HERE and return to your local Integrated Care office.

Thank you once again to you and your teams and please do not hesitate to contact CPNI Office on 028 9069 0444 for further advice or support.

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF
GERARD GREENE
Chief Executive
Dear Colleague
The Community Pharmacy “Big Jab Weekend” which is taking place on Saturday 4 and Sunday 5 December 2021 is fast approaching.

To raise awareness of the weekend and to help encourage uptake in your area, we have drafted a second social media card HERE. Contractors can add their own local messaging alongside this card, tailoring for their specific vaccine offering. For e.g. 1st, 2nd primary or booster, opening times, and location.

To help increase online reach, I would ask you to please tag in the following organisations in social media posts as they will share posts relating to the weekend:
  • CPNI – Twitter: @compharmacyni, Facebook: @communitypharmacyni and Instagram: @compharmacyni
  • Department of Health – Twitter: @healthdpt
  • Health and Social Care Board – Twitter: @HSCBoard, Facebook: @healthandsocialcareboard and Instagram: @health_and_social_care
  • Public Health Agency – Twitter: @publichealthni, Facebook: @publichealthagency and Instagram: @publichealthni
  • NICVA – Twitter: @NICVA and Facebook: @NICVA 
  • Healthy Living Centre Alliance -Twitter @HLCAlliance

To create greater awareness of the weekend, teams are invited to add photos taken at their vaccination clinics to their social media channels. I have attached a copy of CPNI’s media consent form HERE which patients are asked to sign. This is only required if they are fully visible and can be identified in photos.
 
Over 217,000 vaccinations have been administered to date by community pharmacy. This a fantastic achievement and the “Big Jab Weekend” is a further opportunity to demonstrate the value of delivering vaccination programmes through community pharmacy.
 
Department of Health and Social Care guidance offers good practice for enhancing the security of NHS vaccination sites and Mobile Vaccination Units (MVUs) and pop-up vaccination sites during the Big Weekend event detailed below:

Thank you once again to you and your teams and please do not hesitate to contact CPNI Office on 028 9069 0444 for further advice or support.

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF
GERARD GREENE
Chief Executive
Dear Colleague
From today, as outlined in CPNI correspondence on Monday 22 November 2021 The Cessation of Non-Commission Adherence Service to New Patients CPNI community pharmacies are no longer taking on new compliance aid patients. To continue with adherence support in its current format would put patient safety and core pharmacy services at risk and contractors have taken this step to protect and support increasingly stretched community pharmacy teams.

If you receive a prescription endorsed with dispense weekly, or another specified interval, this should still be dispensed in skillets in the quantity specified by the prescription. Multiple dispensing fees will still be paid and, although we do not agree with the current level that multiple dispensing fees, we do need to continue to provide this specific element as part of our Terms of Service.

Alongside the contractor resources you received in Cessation Of Non-Commissioned Adherence Service To New Patients Pharmacy Resources, CPNI have produced an advice sheet HERE which you may find useful when dealing with MDS requests from a hospital pharmacist or direct from a patient or carer. This resource outlines options to consider as an alternatives to MDS for new patients with potential adherence issues.

CPNI has issued a press release HERE. If you or a member of your team is contacted by the media, please contact the CPNI offices for advice and guidance.

Please ensure that this information is shared with your pharmacy team members in each pharmacy you operate.

Please do not hesitate to contact CPNI Office on 028 9069 0444 for further advice or support.

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF
GERARD GREENE
Chief Executive
Dear Colleague
Please find attached HERE correspondence from Colette Rogers, Strategic Lead for Tobacco Control NI, PHA and Dr Stephen Bergin, Director of Public Health (Interim), PHA.

SUMMARY

  • Carbon monoxide (CO) testing has been paused since the early stages of the pandemic due to concerns regarding infection as well as to reduce the duration of face-to-face appointments.
  • CO monitoring may now be re-started as PHE advise the risk of COVID-19 virus transmission via use of CO monitors is minimal.

ACTION

  • Contractors are advised to:
  • Review the attached correspondence.
  • Note when resuming CO monitoring, staff should ensure that they follow their manufacturer’s guidance on the safe handling/cleaning of monitors. Additional COVID-19 specific guidance now includes:Carry out the test with a minimum 2 metre distance between the SSS adviser and the client, using verbal instructions on how to use the monitor.
  • Ensure the client is not facing the advisor when blowing into the machine.
  • Ensure the room where CO monitoring is taking place is well-ventilated.
  • Ask the client to dispose of the mouthpiece into the bin themselves, then wash their hands/use sanitiser
  • Contact CPNI offices should you require any additional information.

Kind regards

SENT ON BEHALF OF
GERARD GREENE

Chief Executive