Rob Nelder (Public Health Specialist), David Bearman (Community Pharmacy Devon) and Sue Taylor (Community Pharmacy Devon (Virtual)) delivered the Plymouth Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment 2025-28 and discussed:

a)     The Board held a statutory duty to produce a Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) in three yearly cycles;

b)    The PNA examined pharmacy provision across Plymouth, and highlighted any gaps in services;

c)     The PNA was a ‘control of entry document’, and was utilised by organisations wishing to establish pharmacy provision in Plymouth to evidence how they would meet existing need. The Integrate Care Board (ICB) utilised the PNA to determine applications for new pharmacies or services;

d)    The PNA was developed jointly with Devon and Torbay to ensure consistency and cross-boundary planning;

e)     The assessment included locality-based analysis, demographic data, housing growth projections, and a gap analysis;

f)      The PNA identified that there was sufficient pharmacy provision across Plymouth, with no gaps in weekday or weekend access, except for one identified gap in Barne Barton due to deprivation and geographic isolation.

g)     The PNA included a “what if” analysis to assess the impact of potential closures and noted that while provision was currently adequate, closures in certain areas could create future gaps;

h)    Housing development data was incorporated to anticipate future demand;

i)      A 60-day professional consultation had been conducted, with positive feedback and minor corrections;

j)      The PNA had been brought forward due to recent pharmacy closures and concerns about system resilience;

k)     Community pharmacies were in a precarious financial position, and integration into broader health strategies was essential;

l)      The future of pharmacy would rely more on clinical services than supply alone, with independent prescribing becoming standard.

In response to questions, the Board discussed:

m)   Concerns about service quality and long queues experienced by customers, particularly in Plympton. It was reported that the PNA considered, and included contingency planning;

n)    Concerns about provision in Sherford and the need to analyse if provision was sufficient. It was reported that Sherford was primarily covered in Devon’s PNA, which was being developed in parallel;

o)    The importance of local access for deprived communities.

The Board agreed:

1.     To Formally accept the Plymouth Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment for 2025-2028;

2.     To agree to the publication of the PNA on the Health and Wellbeing Board page of the Plymouth Public Health website (part of the wider Plymouth City Council site);

3.     To review the implications for Pharmacy provision in Sherford following the publication of Devon’s PNA to ensure it was sufficient.