The Minor Ailment Service

The Right Medicine made a commitment to introduce schemes to allow patients to use the pharmacy of their choice as the first port of call for the treatment of common illnesses on the NHS. Following the completion of a service in two pilot areas the service was rolled out nationwide in July 2006. The service aims to:

• Improve access for patients
• Promote care through the community pharmacy setting
• Transfer care from GPs and nurses to pharmacists where it is appropriate
• Help address health inequalities
• Assist the primary care team to achieve their 48 hour access commitment

Patients who are registered with a Scottish GP and who are exempt from prescription charges (with the exception of people who are resident in a care home, temporary residents or those who have bought a prepayment certificate) must register with a community pharmacy to receive the service. A pharmacist can provide advice, treatment or a referral to another health care professional according to the patients’ needs. The full specification for the service can be accessed by clicking here.

The provision of the service is supported by the ePharmacy programme. All community pharmacies are required to possess the necessary software functionality.  A checklist of the requirements is available here.

Payment for the service is made on a capitation basis calculated on the number of registrations held within the Central Patient Registration System which is hosted by National Support Services. The calculation is carried out on the last day of each month. The payment scales are currently under review. The rates agreed for 2007/08 remain in place until that review is complete.

Prescribing for a Minor Ailment
When a pharmacist decides that it is necessary to provide treatment, s/he will generate a prescription electronically which will then be printed out on form CP2. The paper form is necessary to capture the patient’s declaration that they remain exempt from prescription charges. Prescribing should be in line with the information given in the local MAS formulary or the overarching NHS formulary. Some problems with payment for prescribed items have occurred due to the default settings within the PSD system. To overcome these Community Pharmacy Scotland has produced a “national formulary” based on the information given in the local formularies. A copy can be accessed here (Part 1:  Generic and Proprietary, Part 2:  BNF Category). Further guidance on MAS prescriptions can be found in the Contractor Services section of the website.

Supporting Material
An implementation support pack and a “Responding to Minor Ailments” have been produced by NES  
Leaflets are also available from:
Banner Business Supplies Limited, Unit 2 Kingsthorne Park,Houstoun Industrial Estate Livingston, EH54 5DB       
Tel: 01506 448 410.