Allied Pharmacy CowleyGPhC

Pharmacy context

The pharmacy is next to a health centre. It dispenses NHS and private prescriptions, sells over-the-counter medicines and provides health advice. The pharmacy supplies medicines in multi-compartment compliance aids for people who have difficulty managing their medicines. Services include prescription collection and delivery, discharge medicines service (DMS), Pharmacy Collect Service (supply of lateral flow tests), substance misuse and seasonal flu vaccination service. The inspection took place during the COVID-19 pandemic. All aspects of the pharmacy were not inspected.

Standards by principle

• Principle 1 – Governance

  Standards met

  The pharmacy’s working practices are mostly safe and effective. Its team members have introduced new ways of working to protect people against COVID‐19 infection. The pharmacy keeps the records it needs to so it can show it supplies its medicines safely and legally. The pharmacy's team members understand their role in protecting vulnerable people. And they keep people's private information safe. They record and review their mistakes when dispensing medicines to learn and help prevent the same errors happening again. The pharmacy has written procedures which tell staff how to work safely.

• Principle 2 – Staff

  Standards met

  The pharmacy team manages the workload in the pharmacy and delivers its services safely. Team members are supported in keeping their knowledge up to date. They work well together and are comfortable about providing feedback to the pharmacist.

• Principle 3 – Premises

  Standards met

  The pharmacy's premises are generally safe, clean and suitable for the provision of its services. Team members have introduced new ways of working to help protect people from COVID‐19 infection. The pharmacy prevents people accessing its premises when it is closed so that it keeps its medicines and people's information safe.

• Principle 4 – Services

  Standards met

  People with different needs can access the pharmacy’s services. The pharmacy gets its medicines from reputable sources to protect people from harm. Team members know what to do if any medicines or devices need to be returned to the suppliers. They give advice to people about where they can get other support. The pharmacy team members make a record when checking that medicines are safe for people to take. So they can show they give appropriate advice to help protect patient safety.

• Principle 5 – Equipment

  Standards met

  The pharmacy has the equipment and facilities it needs for the services it offers. The pharmacy uses its equipment appropriately to keep people’s private information safe.

Inspection history summary