Inspection outcome: Standards met
Last inspection: 29/04/2019
Pharmacy context
This is a community pharmacy located next to a GP surgery within a residential area of Aylesbury in Buckinghamshire. Mainly older people use the pharmacy’s services. The pharmacy dispenses NHS and private prescriptions. It provides some services such as Medicines Use Reviews (MURs) and the New Medicines Service (NMS). And, it supplies some people with their medicines inside multi-compartment compliance packs for people who find it difficult to take their medicines on time.
Inspection summary findings
Principle 1. Governance
The pharmacy manages some risks effectively. The pharmacy team deal with mistakes that occur during the dispensing process responsibly. But, they don’t formally review them and they are not recording all the details. This could mean that opportunities to spot patterns or trends are missed. And, they may not always understand how to prevent similar mistakes in future. Members of the pharmacy team generally protect people's private information. But, they are sharing their NHS smart cards to access electronic prescriptions. This makes it more difficult for them to control access to people’s records and keep information safe. Some members of the team understand how they can protect the welfare of vulnerable people. But, they could not find details of the local safeguarding agencies. This could lead to a delay in reporting concerns. The pharmacy is insured for the services it provides. But, some of the pharmacy's records are not always kept in accordance with the law. This means that the team may not have all the information needed if problems or queries arise.
Principle 2. Staff
The pharmacy has enough staff to manage the workload safely. Pharmacy team members are trained well or they are undertaking appropriate training for their role. They understand their roles and responsibilities. And, they keep their skills and knowledge up to date by completing regular training.
Principle 3. Premises
The pharmacy premises are clean, secure and provide a professional environment for the delivery of pharmacy services.
Principle 4. Services, including medicines management
The pharmacy obtains its medicines from reputable sources. But, some medicines are stored in poorly labelled containers. This makes it harder for the team to check the expiry date, assess the stability or take any necessary action if the medicine is recalled. Team members generally ensure pharmacy services are provided safely. But, some medicines are supplied within their original packaging inside compliance packs. This could lead to people accidentally swallowing the medicine as well as the packaging. And, the pharmacy does not always provide medicine leaflets. This means that people may not have all the information they need to take their medicines safely.
Principle 5. Equipment and facilities
The pharmacy has appropriate equipment and facilities to provide services safely.
What do the inspection outcomes mean?
After an inspection each pharmacy receives one overall outcome. This will be either Standards met or Standards not all met
| The pharmacy has met all the standards for registered pharmacies | |
| The pharmacy has not met one or more of the standards for registered pharmacies |
What do the summary findings for each principle mean?
The standards for registered pharmacies are made up of five principles. The pharmacy will also receive one of four possible findings for each of these principles. These are:
| The pharmacy delivers an innovative service and benefits the whole community and performs well against the standards | |
| The pharmacy delivers positive outcomes for patients and performs well against most of the standards | |
| The pharmacy meets all the standards | |
| The pharmacy has not met one or more standards |