One Size FIts All

Among baggage reclaim carousels across the globe, passengers are reuniting themselves with exactly the same luggage in one country as they so trustingly parted from in another.

The Direct Approach

In a bid to raise awareness about the breadth, variety and indeed complexity of services offered throughout community pharmacies in Northern Ireland, pharmacy contractors Lee Dearn and James McKay joined David McCrea in Dundela Pharmacy to welcome the Health Minister.

The Right Formula

First the Albert Clock was treated to a reinvigorating cleanse, then the Merchant Hotel opened one of Belfast's premier jazz bars but the redevelopment of High Street doesnít stop there. Formula Healthís face-lift has turned heads of customers, commercial businesses and the Lord Mayor alike.

News in Brief

Cost Of A Pint

The 'shocking' cost of alcohol misuse in Northern Ireland was highlighted by Health Minister Michael McGimpsey in June after estimates that its cost to society equates to £679.8million with a range of £500million to £884million. "This research shows that the cost to the Health Service alone may be as high as around £160million each year with a further cost of £82million to Social Services,î the Minister said. ìThese figures are particularly pertinent in the context of my Departmentís very challenging financial situation because this is money that could be spent providing key frontline services."

Heart In Hands

The British Heart Foundation Northern Ireland is appealing to fundraisers to help it reach its target of £80,000 by August. The campaign is to recruit more heart nurses to support patients throughout the province and to reduce secondary care admissions.

Haiti Fundraising

Staff at Holly Villa in the Tyrone and Fermanagh Hospital have raised over £320 for a group who are travelling to Haiti in October to build houses following the earthquake. The Tyrone Haiti Build is a project in conjunction with the Haven Partnership to support those affected by the disaster.

Secondary Care Supported

A new hospital in Omaghs fight for funding has been supported by Health Minister Michael McGimpsey. Speaking at a meeting with the Omagh joint liaison group, the Minister said: "I am fully committed to the development of the new Omagh hospital and will continue to press for the essential funding needed to make this a reality."

Commissioning Together

Pharmacists and GPs must work together to define the gaps in commissioning data, review how they can be filled and to determine the correct level of care provision for a particular area, according to Stephen Foster, the head of the new Healthcare Professionals Commissioning Network. The network is open to any health or social care professional who would like to engage in commissioning. tinyurl.com/HCPnetwork

Ask Your Pharmacist

Written by Laure James - Editor Pharmacy in Focus
Tuesday, 16 September 2008 11:36
But that motto isn’t just for patients. If requests to contribute to community initiatives in health promotion are anything to go by, pharmacy is certainly at the top of most organisations’ lists for those to consult. This month NIPinF has heard about such projects drawing on the expertise of pharmacists from across Northern Ireland. Bradleys Pharmacy is among those pharmacy businesses who believe such activities are very worthwhile getting involved with and when approached to participate in the Healthy Omagh Initiative, a region-wide health promotion drive, they couldn’t say no. “We decided to provide a health-screening event on an appointment basis,” explained Jolene O’Kane from Bradleys. “With this we wanted to do the most comprehensive screening we could, so we decided on blood glucose testing, blood pressure testing, cholesterol testing, BMI and body fat measurement.” Bradleys believe that their team of community pharmacists can develop an important role in all these areas particularly in early detection. “As with many long-term conditions that are heavily related to lifestyle, type 2 diabetes and hypercholesterolaemia can develop over a period of time and can remain free from obvious symptoms for many years,” Jolene added. “The critical feature of community pharmacy is that staff see people who do not consider themselves unwell and may not regularly see their doctor. Also the less formal environment lends itself to more casual discussions on health and lifestyle. “The health checks were advertised in the local press and also on leaflets distributed throughout the Omagh area and the demand was much higher than anticipated,” Jolene continued. “All available slots were filled by the second day of advertising. We had booked slots half an hour apart and found that each patient took in the region of twenty minutes to complete. We found this was also an excellent opportunity to promote the smoking cessation scheme. We had ordered support materials from the Health Promotion Agency and had appropriate leaflets to give to our patients for backup advice when needed.” Of the 30 tests the pharmacy completed, 26 were within normal guidelines, two had to be called back for fasting tests and two were referred to the doctor for further investigation. “The patient feedback we received was very positive and with the amount of interest the health checks generated it is something we would definitely like to run on a regular basis,” Jolene concluded. “From our pharmacists’ points of view it was also a very rewarding exercise in patient care.”