In Interviews

Follow this topic

Bookmark

Record learning outcomes

Alex Briggs and his team at Westcliffe Pharmacy have pushed the boundaries of what community pharmacy can achieve, as Saša Janković discovered…

The bustling Yorkshire town of Shipley is home to Westcliffe Pharmacy, who are led by pharmacist manager Alex Briggs, winner of the Pharmacy Innovation Award at last year’s Independent Pharmacy Awards.

He has always been adamant that success is a team endeavour. Alex began his career with hospital-based pre-registration training and qualified in 2021.

He then came to Westcliffe Pharmacy with a vision to elevate the level of care it provided to the community.

With a proactive approach to pharmacy practice that includes a role as a pharmacy liaison for his primary care network and a neighbouring PCN, Alex gained independent prescribing annotation.

He has also undertaken various short courses through Community Pharmacy West Yorkshire, covering crucial areas such as team leadership and the management of local minor ailments.

The pharmacy is attached to a medical centre and surrounded by three local surgeries, serving a population with significant health challenges, particularly in cardiovascular health and smoking prevalence.

Alongside his diverse team of 27 members, his busy pharmacy dispenses about 29,000 items a month and offers a comprehensive range of NHS and additional services.

These include smoking cessation advice, contraception reviews, seasonal influenza vaccinations, and an advanced clinical hypertension case-finding service, among others.

Addressing cardiovascular health

One of Alex’s most impactful innovations is the enhanced access cardiovascular health check, developed in response to data from Public Health England and consultations with GP surgeries.

It highlights the difficulties many patients face in scheduling essential checks during regular surgery hours.

Recognising a gap in local health services, Alex and his team implemented a Saturday clinic specifically for cardiovascular health assessments.

Staff were trained to conduct comprehensive health measurements, including blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and HbA1C testing.

They also introduced a point-of-care testing device for cholesterol, further improving the service’s efficiency and reliability.

“The idea behind the Saturday clinic was to offer services outside the usual GP surgery hours, making it more accessible for our patients who work standard weekday hours,” explains Alex.

“Although we initially considered phlebotomy for blood testing, we soon realised that transporting and processing the samples would prove too challenging.

“So, we partnered with point-of-care testing company PocDoc which enabled us to offer cholesterol and HbA1c tests with a high degree of accuracy, and provide patients with their results in about seven minutes.”

Training the staff to conduct these tests was a vital part of the service.

“We structured the training with media resources, literature, and hands-on demonstrations, including mock blood collections and brainstorming sessions to anticipate potential issues”, he says.

“And although it took a little time to build confidence, once staff were comfortable with the procedures, they became very autonomous.

“We space appointments with time in between them to ensure smooth operations and prevent staff burnout.”

Significant impacts

The results of the service have been significant: 61 new patients with hypertension and 354 patients at risk of cardiovascular disease have been identified since the clinic's inception.

That exceeded national averages – but Alex and his team are not stopping there.

“We’re looking at how we can expand and refine the service”, says Alex, “and one of our main goals is to improve patient follow-up.

“When a patient is diagnosed with hypertension, for example, it’s not just about identifying high blood pressure; it involves further tests like ambulatory blood pressure monitoring, organ function checks and atrial fibrillation screening.

“And we want to collaborate more closely with GP surgeries to ensure these follow-ups are integrated smoothly into patient care pathways.”

Further expansion

There is also the option of expanding the service model into other locations.

“One of the key areas we’re looking at is growing the reach of the enhanced access cardiovascular health check in more areas”, says Alex.

“We know that one of the main barriers to access is people having the time and the ability to travel.

“The ideal scenario would be setting up similar services in multiple locations, particularly in areas where patients have difficulty traveling, so we are exploring different approaches.

“One option is collaborating with other pharmacies which already have the necessary infrastructure in place.

“There are around 6,000 GP surgeries in the UK and some 11,000 pharmacies, so leveraging pharmacies as healthcare hubs makes sense.

“And another option could be working within PCNs, which already run some mobile services, but we are still in the early stages of determining the best approach.”

Pharmacy First progress

Another initiative that is working well for Westcliffe Pharmacy is Pharmacy First.

One year on from its launch Alex says it has been “well received” in Shipley.

“Local surgeries are supportive, and care navigators are becoming increasingly skilled at directing patients to pharmacists for appropriate conditions, and as a result we’re seeing a high number of referrals across local pharmacies”, he says.

“One of the key advantages for us is capacity”, he adds, “as we usually have two pharmacists working at any given time, which allows us to manage a higher patient volume.

“Of course, that’s not to say that we haven’t faced some of the common challenges that other pharmacies report too, such as inappropriate referrals and walk-ins that don’t meet the service criteria.

“But we haven’t struggled to meet our targets, which I know has been an issue for some pharmacies, depending on the health demographics of their local population.”

The role of teamwork in innovation

Whether on the topic of current services or future expansion plans, Alex stresses that all achievements are down to the entire team.

“All these projects and our ongoing success wouldn’t be possible without the dedication of our team”, he says.

“Their willingness to embrace new services, develop new skills, and collaborate with local healthcare providers has been crucial.

“I am a strong believer that innovation in pharmacy has to be a collaborative effort.

“We need to work together – pharmacists, technicians, dispensers and GPs – to make these services truly effective.

“That will prove pharmacies can become vital community hubs that meet the government’s preventive healthcare agenda, improving patient outcomes and accessibility.”