The DoH have issued correspondence 8th March 2024 regarding the Spring 2024 COVID-19 booster campaign.
SUMMARY
The COVID-19 Autumn 2023/24 booster programme officially ends on the 31 March 2024.
The PHA are working with providers to finalise the Spring 2024 booster campaign and aims to start mid-April 2024 until 30th June 2024.
Care Homes will be paired with a community pharmacy who will attend and offer the vaccine to all residents. Community pharmacies should prioritise care home residents from the beginning of the Spring booster programme.
Those aged 75 years or older or immunosuppressed individuals aged 18 years or older, also have the option to receive their vaccination via a participating community pharmacy.
The vaccination programme is operating under a Patient Group Direction (PGD) which will be issued by PHA/SPPG. Spring boosters may only commence when the PGD is in place and providers will be notified by the relevant bodies.
ACTION
Contractors should review the correspondence issued and share this information with relevant members of the pharmacy team.
Please do not hesitate to contact CPNI for any further information.
Kind regards
SENT ON BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE Chief Executive
Dear Contractor
Correspondence has been issued by SPPG 6th March 2024 regarding LFD distribution.
SUMMARY
The PHA have updated the COVID testing policy on the 29th February 2024 resulting in a reduction in the cohort of individuals who need to continue to test.
In response to this update SPPG are now pausing the ordering of LFDs through Pharmacy Collect NI until 18th March 2024.
It is anticipated that ordering will reduce and therefore BSO will limit ordering to one carton (30 boxes of 7) per week.
ACTION
Contractors should read and review the correspondence received from SPPG regarding the LFD Distribution Service.
Note that ordering of LFDs has been paused by SPPG, and will reopen on 18th March 2024.
Please share this information with all relevant team members.
If you have any queries in relation to the changes outlined in this email please contact your local Primary Care Office.
Kind regards
SENT ON BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE Chief Executive
Dear Contractor
Communicationwas issued 16th February 2024 by SPPG to those pharmacies involved in the Community Pharmacy Care Home Support Service (CPCHSS).
SUMMARY
A requirement for the Community Care Home Support Service is to complete two care home visits each financial year.
The second care home visit is due to be completed by the end of March 2024.
SPPG have recently introduced a process for partial recuperation of payments made to community pharmacists who are contracted to provide the service but have not completed the required visits in line with service specification.
SPPG will be in contact in early April to seek confirmation and dates of the visits completed for 23/24.
ACTION
Contractors should review the correspondence issued by SPPG 16th February 2024.
Any pharmacy yet to complete the second required care home visit should organise a date before the end of March 2024.
Please share this information with all relevant members of the team.
If you have any queries in relation to this service please contact Breege Brogan Breege.Brogan@hscni.net or Gillian Plant Gillian.Plant@hscni.net
Please bring this to the attention of your pharmacy team(s).
Kind regards
SENT ON BEHALF OF Gerard Greene Chief Executive
Dear Contractor
As a follow up to the Contractor Meeting on Wednesday evening I write in relation to the following points:
NI Assembly Health Committee – invitation for CPNI to attend on Thursday 7th March 2024.
Contractor Letters of representation and follow-up letters to the Health Minister and MLA’s.
Request for NMW/NLW information.
Foundation Training Year (FTY) 2025/26.
NI Assembly Health Committee – I can confirm that CPNI have been invited and will attend the NI Assembly Health Committee meeting next Thursday, 7th March 2024.
Contractor Letters to the Health Minister – Contractors agreed at Wednesday’s Contractor meeting to send any remaining letters of representation that still had to be written to the Heath Minister and MLA’s as a matter of priority. With CPNI’s attendance at the next week’s Health Committee it is recommended that these letters are sent prior to next Thursday’s Health Committee meeting. Information, if needed, to assist contractors in the drafting of letters of representation is available at CPNI CU#240207A. Contractors writing their first letter should also acknowledge receipt of, and the importance of the funding released by the Health Minister following the meeting with CPNI earlier this month
Similarly, it was agreed that those Contractors who may have received a pro-forma type letter of reply, via SPPG, should send a follow-up letter to the Health Minister, copying in MLA’s if you are not satisfied with either the reply or the nature of the reply. Such follow-up letters should also be sent in advance of next Thursday’s Health Committee meeting.
3. Request for NMW/NLW information – further to the request in CPNI CU#240228C to provide information on cost increases associated with NMW/NLW changes in 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2023/24 I want to thank those contractors who have already forwarded the relevant information. When compiling your information please annotate your 2023/24 information according to whether 11-months data has been provided or whether you have provided extrapolated 12-month cost increase information. Also, please note that the majority of the Covid Staff Recognition Payments (SRP @ £500 per F/T e’ee) were processed to pharmacies/staff in Dec’21; again I would ask that you annotate your information with the total amount of SRP you received in the relevant year(s). It is important that CPNI can provide cost increase evidence to SPPG associated with recent NMW/NLW increases and I would ask you to make every effort to provide the information to office@communitypharmacyni.co.uk on or before Tuesday 5th March 2024.
4. FTY 2025/26 – Finally, as discussed at Wednesday’s Contractor meeting the manner in which arrangements for FTY 2025/26 including the differential salary terms, as referred to in CPNI CU#240227A has resulted in Contractors who attended the meeting deciding to step back from the 2025/26 FTY application process at this stage, whether they:
had already applied to NICPLD or
were considering applying to NICPLD for a 2025/26 FTY training grant.
For any Contractors who had either applied or who were intending to apply to NICPLD for a 2025/26 FTY training grant, and who wish to step back from the 2025/26 FTY application process at this stage, it is recommended that you notify NICPLD accordingly by email to nicpld-fty@qub.ac.ukno later than Monday 4th March 2024
Please do not hesitate to contact CPNI offices or your local CPNI Board representative should you require any additional information at this stage.
Kind regards
SENT ON BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE Chief Executive
Dear Contractor
Please see the attached correspondence issued by Sir Michael McBride, Chief Medical Officer 1st March 2024 regarding Covid-19 testing guidance.
SUMMARY
The correspondence issued today by the CMO contains updated information on the requirements for Covid-19 testing following a review by the Department’s Expert Advisory Group on Testing.
The Public Health Agency (PHA) has refreshed operational guidance to health and social care settings, setting out updated advice on COVID-19 testing. This guidance can be accessed here.
COVID-19 testing of symptomatic staff across health and social care settings, including hospitals, primary care, community, care homes and hospices, is no longer required.
There are exceptions to this advice which is detailed within the guidance.
ACTION
Contractors are asked to read the letter issued by the CMO 1st March 2024 and familiarise themselves with the updated PHA guidance here.
Please share this information with all relevant members of the pharmacy team.
Do not hesitate to contact CPNI for any further information.
Kind regards
SENT ON BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE Chief Executive
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