Newdays Pharmacy LimitedGPhC

Pharmacy context

This pharmacy is one of four local pharmacies under the same independent ownership. It is on the main crossroads in the centre of Twyford, near Reading in Berkshire. It dispenses people’s prescriptions, sells over-the-counter medicines and offers healthcare advice. It runs a COVID vaccination clinic upstairs, and it also provides flu vaccinations in the autumn and winter months. Other services include deliveries for those who can’t visit the pharmacy in person. And it dispenses some medicines in multi-compartment compliance packs to help people manage their medicines more easily.

Standards by principle

• Principle 1 – Governance

  Standards met

  The pharmacy’s team members are clear about their roles and responsibilities. And they work to professional standards, identifying and managing risks effectively. The pharmacy has effective plans in place for use in an emergency and has updated those plans appropriately for the pandemic. The team manages and protects confidential information well and tells people how their private information will be used. Team members understand their role in helping to protect the welfare of vulnerable people. The pharmacy keeps adequate records of the mistakes that happen during the dispensing process. The pharmacist manager reviews them with members of the team so that they can learn from them and avoid problems being repeated. But they don’t adequately record how they have reflected upon their mistakes and learned from them. The pharmacy has detailed written procedures for its team to follow. But those procedures haven’t been reviewed or updated recently enough.

• Principle 2 – Staff

  Standards met

  The pharmacy usually has enough staff to manage its workload safely. Pharmacy team members are well-trained and have a clear understanding of their roles and responsibilities. They work well together and can make suggestions to improve safety and workflows where appropriate

• Principle 3 – Premises

  Standards met

  The pharmacy’s premises provide a secure and professional environment for people to receive its services. The premises include private rooms which the team use for some of its services and for private conversations. The pharmacy makes effective use of all the space available so that it can provide its extra services.

• Principle 4 – Services

  Standards met

  The pharmacy delivers its services in a safe and effective manner, and people with a range of needs can easily access them. The pharmacy sources, stores and manages its medicines safely, and so makes sure that all the medicines it supplies are fit for purpose. It responds well to drug alerts or product recalls to make sure that people only get medicines or devices which are safe for them to take. It identifies people supplied with high-risk medicines so that they can be given extra information they may need to take their medicines safely. But it’s team members don’t record the checks they make, which may make it harder to show what had been done if a problem were to arise in the future.

• Principle 5 – Equipment

  Standards met

  The pharmacy has adequate facilities for the services it provides, and it makes sure that they are properly maintained. It also ensures that people’s private information is kept safe and secure. But its team members aren’t always taking enough care over the security of their individual NHS smartcards.

Inspection history summary