In Health & NHS news

Follow this topic

Bookmark

Record learning outcomes

NHS England (NHSE) has said about 100 community pharmacies will offer free walk-in cholesterol check-ups this autumn as part of the Government’s ambition to reduce heart disease and stroke deaths by a quarter over the next 10 years.

Pharmacies will offer people aged 40 to 84 who are not pregnant and have not had a blood test in the last 12 months a pin-prick test which will analyse individual’s cholesterol profile in seven minutes.

NHSE said that will allow pharmacist prescribers “to provide lifestyle advice and determine whether any treatment is needed”. Patients will be emailed a copy of their test results and will also be offered a blood pressure check.

The pilot runs until the spring next year. NHSE told Independent Community Pharmacist it will “provide an update on which pharmacies are involved at a later date”.

The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) chief executive Henry Gregg said the pilot was “an historic and positive step forward” and insisted the NPA is “keen to see this rolled out to more pharmacies in the network”.

“We have been clear for a long time that pharmacies can play a much bigger role in our health system providing a wider range of care to patients, with the right levels of support from the NHS,” he said.

“The NHS should expand the role of community pharmacy, including rolling out prescribing more widely, increasing the number of conditions available through Pharmacy First and allowing pharmacists a greater role in the detection of long- term conditions.”

A previous pilot by Barts Health NHS Trust, UCLPartners and the charity HEART UK, which ran between January 2025 and March 2026, tested 2,493 patients at 61 community pharmacies.

It found 19 per cent were suitable for “pharmacological intervention” and 88 people were started on statins.

The chief pharmaceutical officer for England David Webb said: “Your local pharmacy can be a vital first line of defence against serious illness.

“By making it easier for people to get a quick and convenient cholesterol health check on their local high street, we can spot ticking time bombs earlier, helping people take action, and prevent heart attacks and strokes before they happen.

“This is the latest in a series of initiatives involving pharmacies in delivering care previously only offered in GP surgeries as part of the 10-year health plan to bring care closer to where people live.”