The service specification requires the pharmacy to have a consultation room with IT equipment accessible in the room to allow contemporaneous recording of the consultation.⁵

Pharmacy contractors must be able to provide all parts of the PFS except distance-selling pharmacies (DSPs) which are exempted from conducting otitis media consultations. All other pharmacies providing the PFS must have an otoscope for acute otitis media consultations, although NHS England has given until April 1 2024 to obtain an otoscope.^4,5

Annex C of the PFS specification offers guidance on selecting an otoscope, including preferrable functional and design requirements. Advice includes opting for:⁵

• an LED over a halogen light source;
• at least three times magnification with a wide-angle lens;
• having a range of disposable tips ranging from paediatric to adult.

Disposal of tongue depressors, protective covers for otoscopes or ear thermometers or any other disposable item that may have come into contact with body fluids, secretions or excretions, should be disposed of in yellow and black striped ‘tiger’ bags.²

Pharmacies providing clinical pathway consultations remotely will need to conduct them by live video link. As visual inspection of features such as a rash or urine sample are required, the quality of the video consultation must allow appropriate examination.⁵