Community Pharmacy Devon Weekly Dose 💊

Thursday 2nd April 2026

🐣We would like to take this opportunity to thank all the pharmacy teams for your hard work and effort in supporting patients and local communities. We very much hope you manage to get some rest and relaxation over the Easter break. 🐣

Welcome to your weekly injection of local and national pharmacy news. As always, if you have any feedback or comments, please contact us by email at admin@cpdevon.org.uk.

Updated Easter 2026 Bank Holiday Pharmacy Opening Times

The updated Easter 2026 Bank Holiday pharmacy opening times which we have received from Pharmacy South West England team can be found here.

Important Reminder: Please ensure that your pharmacy NHS Profile Manager is updated to reflect your Bank Holiday opening hours and where applicable your pharmacy website.

Pharmacy Support: Overview Webinars

We had a very informative and useful presentation from the NHS Prescription Services last Thursday evening and the feedback from those attending was very positive.

The NHS Prescription Services hold regular webinars and open days for prescribing and dispensing contractors. The current online Open Day Webinar will fully explain what happens to your prescriptions once they have left you and how accounts are received and prepared for the scanning process.

Prescription processing will be explained and include some important Hints and Tips on Endorsing, Fee claiming and Wrong Group Movements. There will also be time for your questions.

All webinars are free of charge to attend. To book your place on a free webinar, email open-days@nhsbsa.nhs.uk letting them know the date and time of your preferred webinar. If you are unable to attend one of the upcoming dates, they can arrange a bespoke webinar for you.

All information is on the website.

CPE Pharmacy Pressures Survey

❗Please note that the deadline for the 2026 Pharmacy Pressures Survey has been extended to 10am on Monday 13th April. Details here.

Independent Prescribing

Independent Prescribing Places are now live to apply for with 2026-27 dates - providers are listed here.

Please note that community pharmacists CAN apply, we would recommend applying as soon as possible as high demand for places are anticipated.

Stress Awareness Month – April 2026

April is Stress Awareness Month to raise awareness of the causes and cures for our modern-day stress epidemic. It is the time when we have an opportunity for an open conversation on the impact of stress. This year’s theme is #BeTheChange which encourages a collective shift in how we understand, talk about, and respond to stress. You can access helpful resources to help you, a team member, patient or a family member here.

Online Referrals for Emergency Repeat Prescriptions

We have had some feedback recently around NHS App/111 online emergency repeat prescriptions. Notifications from the NHS APP have instructed patients that their emergency prescription has been sent to their pharmacy of choice and to go directly there to collect an emergency supply of a repeat prescription. However, once they are at the pharmacy the pharmacist has refused to issue the emergency supply if the patients GP surgery is still within opening hours.

We would refer you to the service specification for the service pages 8-9 and the Myth Busting Information provided by Community Pharmacy England which states the following:

Myth: I must reject Urgent medicine supply referrals from NHS 111 if a patient’s GP practice is still open.
Wrong! Patients should be advised to contact the GP practice if this is practically the most appropriate option to obtain their medicine or appliance. This may not be possible if, for example, the patient is away from home and unable to access their GP practice or where the GP practice will not be able to issue a prescription in a timely manner, such that the patient can get that prescription dispensed in time for their next required dose of the medicine.

The pharmacist will need to assess each individual request and the circumstances of the patient to determine whether it is appropriate to make a supply via the Pharmacy First service.

Pharmacist Support

Pharmacist Support is an independent and trusted charity supporting pharmacists and their families, former pharmacists, trainee pharmacists and pharmacy students through their wide variety of free and confidential support services. Pharmacist Support’s vision is for no one in their pharmacy family to face challenging times alone.

‘I need help managing my’ area on the charity’s website, provides information on support for mental health and wellbeing, physical health, family and personal life and finances, right through to managing your work life, trainee and student experience.

Assistance from Pharmacist Support can come in many different ways to suit the needs of the individual. When you reach out to the charity for free and confidential support, their friendly team will let you talk through your issue and then guide you through the best way support for you.

Read real-life stories from fellow pharmacy colleagues and peers about how the charity’s services have supported them through difficult times.

There is a whole host of information on the Pharmacist Support website, and you can use the contact page to ask for any information that you cannot find online.