Community pharmacies in north east London have been chosen to participate in a locally-funded scheme to detect people with atrial fibrillation and high blood pressure.

Five years after North East London local pharmaceutical committee (NEL LPC) led a successful trial in which 80 independent pharmacies generated 2,800 interventions in six weeks, it is hoped local pharmacies in the area will continue to develop an important care pathway linking community pharmacy to cardiology departments.

NEL LPC secretary Hemant Patel (pictured), who told ICP of the latest developments, also confirmed that community pharmacies will be integrated into the East London Patient Record and “formal support” had been garnered for the LPC’s high street clinic model.

The model will see community pharmacies as high street clinics integrated into new care and referral pathways, with a strong focus on the use of technology to manage long-term conditions, screen for and monitor diseases and gather population data.

“The high street clinic model where independent prescribing pharmacists will work as first point of contact before referring to GPs, if necessary, has got formal support from the executive team. We expect the Care Cabinet to also support the planned work and approve the funding for further work,” Patel said.

Patel went on to reveal that NEL LPC has been invited by the sustainability and transformation partnership to develop a business case to take forward its self care pharmacy model, in which local pharmacies develop and design long-term condition management plans with individual patients.