If you’re a ‘glass half-full’ type of person you may well be viewing recent headlines with some satisfaction. Community pharmacy has just been granted a new advanced service that we know it can deliver well and with demonstrable results. And contractors will be rewarded with new money to deliver the flu vaccination service, which is well within the capabilities of most pharmacies for relatively little set-up cost. In addition, NHS England is so sure that pharmacists can add value from within GP surgeries that is funding this brave new initiative with £15m of precious NHS cash. Happy days!

On the other side of the coin however, some contractors can be forgiven for grimacing when they discovered that the 2015/2016 contract settlement (yes, for the year that you have already delivered three months of valuable NHS services in) is exactly the same as last year. Everyone except the cheekiest spin-doctor would call this a pay cut. Meanwhile, the latest figures show script numbers have risen by more 50 per cent over the past 10 years, running costs continue to increase, and the new National Living Wage will hike up salary costs from April. More for less may be the current NHS mantra, but some pharmacies must now be surviving on perilously thin margins.

And while pharmacists delivering flu vaccinations looks like a great idea from this side of the fence, some GPs are not so sure that it won’t cost them time and money. This could strain GP-pharmacist relationships in some areas, at a time when greater collaboration is supposed to be the way forward.

The concept of more pharmacists working in GP surgeries seemed like simply more government rhetoric until it was backed up with £15m of funding. NHSE must really want this initiative to take off. Many in pharmacy are delighted that an initiative proposed from within the profession has been taken forward, but others are not so sure. It’s obviously not going to work for everyone in all scenarios and some think that pharmacists should remain 100 per cent rooted in their pharmacies, or the entire pharmacy network is at risk.

But whether your glass is half full or half empty, everyone within the profession should take heart from a recent survey that showed pharmacists are the most trusted profession (News p8). Even if the entire world seems against you at times, your patients are not and could be your greatest asset. Successful widespread pharmacy-based flu vaccination and positive contributions from pharmacists within GP surgeries can only improve public perception and should be something the whole profession works together to achieve.