Pharmacists do not routinely follow up the advice they give patients. Feedback obtained from the Kent, Surrey and Sussex working group showed that pharmacists are perceived as being interested and involved in recognising problems, as well as offering advice and therapy, but not necessarily interested or caring about outcomes. 

Significant numbers of people buy products or ask for advice from community pharmacies, and to follow up on all of these interactions would present quite a challenge. While the patient representatives in the Kent, Surrey and Sussex group recognised this challenge, the perception was that pharmacy professionals did not offer the same level of care as other healthcare professionals. 

While this has started to change with the introduction of the new medicine service (NMS), where advice is provided when a new medicine is started and then followed up a couple of weeks later, it is still not routine practice. 

Putting contingency plans into place in case things do not go to plan (safety-netting) is an important element of good consultation skills. When closing a consultation or discussion with a patient, the pharmacy team should explain what to do next if things go wrong and where to go for further advice.

Practice points

• Undertake a short survey for a few days to find out how customers perceive your pharmacy. Explore the concepts of welcoming customers, offering somewhere to sit and a place to come to if people feel unwell. Based on patient feedback, consider areas for improvement
• Choose a condition where it would be relatively simple to follow up with patients. Commit to undertaking this for at least a week. Discuss the impact of this with your team and ask your customers for their feedback on extending the care that you provide.