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I’ve been blown away by the team we have created and how much the local population are willing to pay for their expertise, says Nick Kaye, who reveals more…

I was interested to recently hear about the walk-in GP centres planned in Scotland and how both GP and pharmacy bodies said that this was inefficient and caused duplication.

It resonated with me because I assume the problem that is trying to be fixed is one of access to great healthcare and a feeling the NHS is not meeting that need. And the reason it struck a chord is that, as I wrote this, the week was proving to be an exciting and nerve-racking one for me.

Exciting because with my business partners, we have a new pharmacy premises, approved by the General Pharmaceutical Council, which should be opening very soon. Nerve-racking because when we open any new ventures, we worry whether they will be a success.

There is, however, with this new pharmacy, something quite different. It is completely private. Yes, that’s right, no NHS contract.

This has filled me with mixed emotions including some sadness. As National Pharmacy Association chair, I felt I played a small part, with a great board and executive team, in securing the largest increase in NHS funding 10 years.

The NHS is one of the greatest organisations that this country has but as far as community pharmacy is concerned, is our contract broken? I have been saying for some time our current NHS contract is not fit for purpose and does the Scottish walk-in centres proposal show there is an unmet need within the system? Well, yes, it does.

Not opening a pharmacy with an NHS contract feels very strange as I have spent the last 20 years of my career chasing NHS contracts and making sure the things we offer are so good that no-one else can win a contract next to us.

So, why am I taking this route? Opportunity? Stubbornness? I have tried it already? I have mentioned before that I’m involved in a pharmacy on the Isle of Man. This pharmacy has now been open for two years and has been delivering NHS services as well as private services.

I have been blown away by the team we have created and how much the local population is willing to pay for their expertise and advice. Each month, private income is three times as high as NHS income.

But like most people I tell, I can hear you say ‘yes Nick but that's the Isle of Man where there are too many rich people!’ Well, the average income on the Isle of Man is only £2,000 per annum more than the UK. And still, I can hear you say ‘that won't work in my area’. But I think it will. So, we are going to open this pharmacy in Newquay in Cornwall, my hometown.

Newquay, you are no doubt thinking, is a lovely area but a private pharmacy wouldn’t work for me. However, if you look at the depravation index for Narrowcliff, which is the area the pharmacy is located, it sits in the 10 per cent most deprived areas in England. So, if it works here, it will work anywhere. And yes, that includes wherever you are reading this article.

So, now the hard work begins! It will be hard to get the population to understand that I can’t have their electronic prescription service nomination. And I’m sorry but if you want Pharmacy First, I can see you as an independent prescriber and offer you a much wider set of solutions to treat your conditions but you will have to pay for it.

And I’m under no illusion how hard that will be in terms of people getting used to that.

However, we will normally have two pharmacists on the site and we will be able to open and close when we want. I can pass on price increases to my patients and there will be no supplying medicines at a loss.

I will continue to fight for the best NHS deal locally and nationally as I believe – and know – that we have the skillset to do so much more for our neighbourhoods. But I have been saying for some time that if the NHS won’t pay for the skillset of my team then maybe, just maybe, the public will. So, it is time to put that belief into practice.

Let’s see how this pans out in six months’ time. I will either be saying this was the best idea we have ever had or maybe the population is not quite ready for it yet.

But whichever way it goes, it’s going to be a great ride with an amazing group of people. 

Nick Kaye is a National Pharmacy Association board member and pharmacist based in Newquay. These are his personal views.