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Objective: Community pharmacies could provide access for clients to commercial weight management organizations. We evaluated recruitment, referral and outcomes of adults provided with free vouchers by community pharmacies to attend Scottish Slimmers classes., Design: Prospective cohort design with qualitative interviews with clients and pharmacy personnel. Scottish Slimmers collected weight and attendance data., Setting: Pharmacies in Aberdeen City, Scotland., Subjects: Clients aged ≥18 years with BMI≥30 kg/m2., Results: Ten of twenty-three pharmacies were recruited; eight successfully recruited clients. Of 129 clients recruited, ninety-seven (75 %) attended at least one class and fifty-one (40 %) attended all twelve classes. At baseline, clients' mean weight was 99·4 (sd 17·5) kg, mean BMI was 37·8 (sd 6·0) kg/m2. After 12 weeks, mean weight change was -3·7 % (last observation carried forward) or -2·8 % (baseline observation carried forward) for all ninety-seven clients. Client interviews indicated that many individuals would have not addressed their weight problems if this referral service had not been available. They had positive attitudes towards the pharmacy signposting service, attributed to the use of consultation rooms for privacy, receiving professional service from personnel and ongoing support and encouragement. The free provision of 12-week access facilitated participation. Service providers had positive attitudes and indicated their willingness to provide this service in future., Conclusions: Community pharmacies could be used to increase access to weight management services, with pharmacy personnel providing additional support to clients. Future provision of pharmacy referral schemes should be evaluated on a larger scale with an economic evaluation.

Background: Effective management of minor ailments in community pharmacies could reduce the burden on alternative high-cost services (general practices, Emergency Departments). Evidence is needed regarding the appropriateness of management of these conditions in community pharmacies., Objective: To explore the appropriateness of minor ailment management in community pharmacies., Setting: Prospective, observational study of simulated patient (SP) visits to community pharmacies in Grampian (Scotland) and East Anglia (England)., Method: Eighteen pharmacies (nine per centre) were recruited within a 25-mile radius of Aberdeen or Norwich. Consultations for four minor ailments were evaluated: back pain; vomiting/diarrhoea; sore throat; and eye discomfort. Each pharmacy received one SP visit per ailment (four visits/pharmacy; 72 visits total). Visits were audio-recorded and SPs completed a data collection form immediately after each visit., Primary Outcome Measure: Each SP consultation was assessed for appropriateness against product licence, practice guidelines and study-specific consensus standards developed by a multi-disciplinary consensus panel., Results: Evaluable data were available for 68/72 (94.4%) visits. Most (96%) visits resulted in the sale of a product; advice alone was the outcome of three visits. All product sales complied with the product licence, 52 (76%) visits complied with practice guidelines and seven visits achieved a 'basic' standard according to the consensus standard., Conclusion: Appropriateness of care varied according to the standard used. Pharmacy-specific quality standards are needed which are realistic and relevant to the pharmacy context and which reflect legal and clinical guidelines to promote the safe and effective management of minor ailments in this setting., (© 2016 The Authors. International Journal of Pharmacy Practice published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Royal Pharmaceutical Society.)

Background: Major changes in the roles and responsibilities of pharmacists across the world are occurring. A new Scottish Community Pharmacy contract was introduced in April 2006, following the introduction of a similar contract in England in 2005. This contract encourages greater involvement in medicines management and other clinical cognitive roles, whilst retaining a supply function., Objective: To use a discrete choice experiment (DCE) to examine the strength of preference of community pharmacists for existing and potential new roles, prior to the introduction of the new contract., Study Design: The DCE was a component of a larger questionnaire, which assessed demography, workload, attitudes to, and satisfaction with, proposed new roles, and current levels of activity. Attributes and levels for the DCE were based on the recent policy document for Scotland, The Right Medicine, and informed consensus, respectively. Scenarios were organised into pairs, and pharmacists were asked "Which job would you prefer?" The questionnaire was mailed to all pharmacists working in the community setting in Scotland (n = 1621), as identified from a telephone survey. The questionnaire was totally anonymous, and two reminders were sent., Results: There was an overall response rate of 56.4% (914/1621). Community pharmacists preferred to work in an extended pharmacy team, to have strong integration with secondary care, and to provide a minor illness advice service. In 2003, they would forgo an annual income of 3443 pounds, 2183 pounds and 2798 pounds, respectively to achieve this. However, overall, the pharmacists preferred more income to less. Repeat dispensing, chronic disease management, offering health promotion services, and the number of prescriptions dispensed per month were not significant predictors of job choice., Conclusion: Community pharmacists placed the highest value on organisational aspects of their work, and having a first contact primary care role. Although total income was important, there were indications that they would be prepared to forgo income to attain their preferred job.