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A King's Fund report published in March looked at how financial pressures in the NHS are affecting patient care. Looking at four areas of healthcare, including GUM services and district nursing, the authors find that while standards of care have not slipped across the board, there are worrying signs of strain.
We asked you whether NHS cuts have started to impact on the wellbeing of those coming into your pharmacy.
Here's what you said...
PRESCRIBING RESTRICTIONS
The cuts are affecting our patients, as the CCG are not prescribing items that may be bought over the counter, even though they may be for a chronic condition. Skin emollients, paracetamol for pain and antihistamines are just a few examples. It's interesting now to read that the NHS is actually planning on stopping the prescribing of low value items such as some pain relief, gluten free products and travel vaccines.
Bipin Patel, NHS Bexley CCG
SURGERY CLOSURES ANNOUNCED
The impact of funding cuts on our own pharmacy cash flow aside, we are hearing patients reporting problems, such as increased waiting times for GP appointments and a general reluctance to authorise elective surgery. In addition, we have had news of two surgery closures in this area.
Coll Michaels, Calverton Pharmacy, Luton
ERODING REPUTATION OF THE NHS
The thing that strikes me most is that while most people continue to support and believe in the concept of the NHS "almost everyone also has their own, very personal, bad news story involving the service. It may be these personal experiences" then relayed to others' that is currently eroding the reputation of the NHS, because there are so many examples.
Peter Cattee, PCT Healthcare, Derbyshire
DO EFFICIENCY CUTS EVER MAKE THINGS BETTER?
It's very difficult to empirically evaluate how hard patients will be affected by NHS cuts, suffice to say any reduction in resources does not help pharmacists do more to improve patient care. I've never heard of efficiency cuts ever making things any better. We already have too many ageing patients and not enough money, so you don't need to be Sherlock Holmes to work out that the cuts will affect patients in many different ways across every sector and it will get worse. Only a Tory politician or a preacher with a PhD in voodoo mathematics would predict otherwise.
Sid Dajani, Wainwrights Chemist, Bishopstoke
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