The new English Pharmacy Board chair Thorrun Govind has said a joint meeting this month between all three national boards examined how independent prescribing in the profession can be developed.

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society pointed to a range of topics discussed during the meeting of the English, Welsh and Scottish boards, including “medicines and sustainability, the expanding role of pharmacist independent prescribers, a continued focus on inclusion and wellbeing and a new digital service for members for professional networking and future work on genomics and personalised medicine.”

Ms Govind (pictured) singled out independent prescribing as having produced “engaging and stimulating discussions” and highlighted education, peer support, governance and support mechanisms and an assessment of capacity and resources as areas that need “careful attention".

“It reminded us how far the profession has come in this field across GB and served to highlight areas where further work is needed,” Ms Govind said.

“As we recover from the pandemic it is clear that actions are now needed on a number of fronts to create the right environment and support for pharmacist prescribers to thrive.”

She added: “This is a big programme of work but I feel confident that our focus on IP will accelerate change for pharmacist prescribing across England, Scotland and Wales.”

Scotland board chair Andrew Carruthers said a discussion on inclusion and diversity looked at “socio-economic status and the impact of rurality…and how these can become compounding factors for some.”

“Inclusion and diversity affects everyone and by focusing on one key area at a time, for example Pride month, it creates a more inclusive profession for everyone,” he said.