Archives: Contractor Email

Dear Colleague,

COVID-19 Update – HSCB Correspondence and Funding Information 27th Mar’20

Pharmacies will receive the attached letter from HSCB over the coming days. The letter provides you with a HSCB update on a range of current issues associated with

COVID-19.

The HSCB letter should be read in conjunction with the letter you received from Mrs Cathy Harrison, Chief Pharmaceutical Officer DoH(NI) on 19th Mar’20

[available here] and Tuesday’s funding announcement by Mr Robin Swann MLA, Minister for Health, referred to in the Contractor Update email below.

Included in the attached HSCB letter is some further information in relation to the COVID-19 Community Pharmacy funding that will be provided to Contractors.

In terms of the COVID-19 Community Pharmacy payments I have summarised the funding allocations and the dates that BSO will process the payments to Contractors as follows;

  • £10m advance payment – this will be paid to Contractors by BSO on 31st Mar’20 and will be included in the BSO payment that you receive. BSO has calculated the amount you will receive on 31st Mar’20 based on your pro-rata amount linked to the overall BSO payments to Contractors in Nov’19, Dec’19 and Jan’20. The CPO letter advises that this advance will be managed out of the system after the COVID-19 response.
  • The remaining £25m advance payment – this will be paid to Contractors by BSO via BACS on Friday 3rd Apr’20. Again, BSO has calculated the amount you will receive on 3rd Apr’20 based on your pro-rata amount linked to the overall BSO payments to Contractors in Nov’19, Dec’19 and Jan’20. The CPO letter advises that this advance will be managed out of the system after the COVID-19 response.
  • The additional £4m that is referred to in the attached HSCB letter will be paid by BSO, via BACS, on Friday 3rd Apr’20. This funding has been provided to Contractors in order to maintain service continuity and to support costs incurred by Contractors as a result of COVID-19 pressures in Mar’20 as follows;
  • £3.5m will be distributed to contractors with each Contract receiving a flat payment of circa £4700 and ONE additional payment of approximately either £750, £1500, £2250 or £3000, depending on which one of 4 dispensing bands each pharmacy contract falls into. These payments are related to costs incurred associated with staff and premises COVID-19 measures that contractors had to introduce in Mar’20.
  • £0.5m will be distributed to Contractors with each Contract receiving a flat payment of circa £900 for Business Continuity costs.
  • The remaining £6.5m of the £10.5m investment announced by the Minister for Health on Tuesday will then be processed to Contractors later in April following further discussion with CPNI.

It is anticipated that further specific payment information will be provided to you by BSO when the payments are processed.

These are extremely challenging times, both operationally and financially, for you and your teams. Please be assured that CPNI continues to support you and work with DoH and HSCB on a range of matters on your behalf.

Before finishing this letter I want to personally thank you and your teams once again for the incredible service you have provided during this extremely challenging COVID-19 period and I wish you and your teams well over the coming days and weeks.

Should you require any additional information please do not hesitate to contact CPNI offices.

Kind regards,

SENT FOR AND BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE | Chief Executive

+++ Also See COVID19 Contractor Update #20 RE: CPNI Meeting with Health Minister +++

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Dear Colleague,

For your information, the HSCB/DH Community Pharmacy COVID-19 FAQs have been updated today (27/03/2020) and are available at http://www.hscbusiness.hscni.net/services/3124.htm.  

As you are aware this is a rapidly evolving situation and therefore the FAQs will need to be updated regularly.  Initially it is anticipated the FAQs will be updated on a twice weekly basis.

The most up to date version will always be hosted at the above link.

Please share this information with your colleagues.

Kind regards,

SENT FOR AND BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE | Chief Executive

Dear Colleague,

Please find attached information which was issued by HSCB yesterday in relation to the current supply position with Beclometasone Inhalers.

Yours sincerely

SENT FOR AND BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE | Chief Executive

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Dear Colleague,

Guidance is available for pharmacy teams detailing the duration of isolation periods for those showing COVID-19 symptoms and for those who live with others showing symptoms.

Self-Isolation

  • If you live alone and you have symptoms of coronavirus illness (COVID-19), however mild, stay at home for 7 days from when your symptoms started.

Household Isolation

  • If you live with others and you are the first in the household to have symptoms of coronavirus, then you must stay at home for 7 days, but all other household members who remain well must stay at home and not leave the house for 14 days. The 14-day period starts from the day when the first person in the house became ill.
  • For anyone else in the household who starts displaying symptoms, they need to stay at home for 7 days from when the symptoms appeared, regardless of what day they are on in the original 14 day isolation period.
  • After 7 days, if the first person to become ill feels better and no longer has a high temperature, they can return to their normal routine.
  • If any other family members become unwell during the 14-day household-isolation period, they should follow the same advice – that is, after 7 days of their symptoms starting, if they feel better and no longer have a high temperature, they can also return to their normal routine.
  • It is likely that people living within a household will infect each other or be infected already. Staying at home for 14 days will greatly reduce the overall amount of infection the household could pass on to others in the community.

The cough may persist for several weeks in some people, despite the coronavirus infection having cleared. A persistent cough alone does not mean someone must continue to self-isolate for more than 7 days.

Please see attached explanatory diagram and more information is available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/covid-19-stay-at-home-guidance/stay-at-home-guidance-for-households-with-possible-coronavirus-covid-19-infection

Yours sincerely

SENT FOR AND BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE | Chief Executive

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Dear Colleague,

HSCB have recognised that during the current COVID 19 community pharmacy staff may require official documentation to verify that they are a Key Health and Social Care worker.

HSCB have drafted template letters which you may wish to provide to your staff to enable verification of their identity as a Key Health and Social Care Worker.

Please find attached three letters being issued by HSCB today:

  1. Cover letter
  2. Letter for Pharmacy owners
  3. Letter for Pharmacy employees

These letters can be printed and provided to your pharmacy staff.

Yours sincerely

SENT FOR AND BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE | Chief Executive

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Dear Colleague,

HSCB colleagues have advised BOC and the Health Service are running low on oxygen cylinders and are needed urgently. 

HSCB have asked us to urge all community pharmacies to return any oxygen cylinders that are not in use to BOC.  This would include any cylinders from patients’ homes that are no longer required.  We appreciate it is difficult for community pharmacy to know what cylinders may be in patients’ homes, but if you can remind patients to return any of their cylinders it would be greatly appreciated at this challenging time. 

As with any patient returns at this time, caution should be taken when accepting returns, and appropriate decontamination measures should be taken.  We have attached a poster to this email that you may wish to display in your pharmacy.

Other professions that are involved with the supply or use oxygen cylinders are also being asked to support this request.  Any assistance you can provide would be welcomed to support the ongoing COVID-19 situation.  

Yours sincerely

SENT FOR AND BEHALF OF GERARD GREENE | Chief Executive

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