NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service

Dav Manku, one of the Associate Regional Pharmacy Procurement Specialists at SPS, presents a summary of the resources published by SPS between 31st October and 6th November.   To easily find a list of newly published pages go to sps.nhs.uk, select ‘search’, click in the search bar, and press enter.    Quick links to highlighted resources:     National PGD, protocol and written instructions templates National templates are developed with experts for clinical specialties. They reduce duplication and variation, and improve consistency of care. https://sps.nhs.uk/home/guidance/patient-group-directions-and-legal-mechanisms/national-pgd-protocol-and-written-instructions-templates/ Next events – forthcoming webinars and conferences            https://www.sps.nhs.uk/home/events/next-events/           Join our WhatsApp channel to stay up to date with our latest news and updates      https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBslvuJpe8aH3n7Zu1i      Podcast description:          NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service serves healthcare professionals across the NHS who are involved in all aspects of buying, making and using medicines. Our motto is 'do once and share'.

John Oliver, one of the Quality Assurance Specialists at SPS, presents a summary of the resources published by SPS between 24th and 30th October.   To easily find a list of newly published pages go to sps.nhs.uk, select ‘search’, click in the search bar, and press enter.    Quick links to highlighted resources:     5-alpha reductase inhibitors (benign prostate hyperplasia) monitoring Medicines monitoring guidance published. https://sps.nhs.uk/monitorings/5%ce%b1-reductase-inhibitors-benign-prostate-hyperplasia-monitoring/ Spotlight, October 2026 A digest of NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service support for professionals working in all areas of the healthcare system for October 2026. https://sps.nhs.uk/articles/spotlight-october-2026/ Medication Safety Update, October 2026 A resource collating the latest medication safety communications and publications to inform, support and inspire medication safety improvements. https://sps.nhs.uk/articles/medication-safety-update/ Next events – forthcoming webinars and conferences            https://www.sps.nhs.uk/home/events/next-events/           Join our WhatsApp channel to stay up to date with our latest news and updates      https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBslvuJpe8aH3n7Zu1i      Podcast description:          NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service serves healthcare professionals across the NHS who are involved in all aspects of buying, making and using medicines. Our motto is 'do once and share'.

Nicola Wake, Associate Director, Medicines Use and Safety at SPS, presents a summary of the resources published by SPS between 17th and 23rd October.   To easily find a list of newly published pages go to sps.nhs.uk, select ‘search’, click in the search bar, and press enter.    Quick links to highlighted resources:     Prescribing Outlook 2026 The 2026 cost calculator is now available. https://sps.nhs.uk/articles/annual-planning-advice-for-new-medicines-prescribing-outlook/ Next events – forthcoming webinars and conferences            https://www.sps.nhs.uk/home/events/next-events/           Join our WhatsApp channel to stay up to date with our latest news and updates      https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBslvuJpe8aH3n7Zu1i      Podcast description:          NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service serves healthcare professionals across the NHS who are involved in all aspects of buying, making and using medicines. Our motto is 'do once and share'.

To further understand why a focus on mental health medication safety is important listen to our short podcast exploring the feedback from a stakeholder engagement exercise. Vanessa Earnshaw, Senior Specialist Pharmacist Medication Safety (NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service) Anna Bischler, Associate Director for Medication Safety (NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service) Find out more about our medication safety across the system resources https://sps.nhs.uk/articles/medication-safety-across-the-system-msats/

Rakhi Aggarwal speaks with Emma Anderson, Clinical Services Director at Evans Pharmacy, about prescribing in community pharmacy. Emma shares her experience of delivering prescribing services through the NHS Community Pharmacy Independent Prescribing Pathfinder programme, and offers practical advice on developing confidence and expanding scope of practice.

Rakhi Aggarwal, Primary Care Lead from NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service, speaks to Rachel Palmer, Consultant Pharmacist, Genomic Medicine, NHS South West Genomic Medicine Service, about the use of pharmacogenomic testing in general practice. They discuss its impact on prescribing, resources to support clinical practice, and the role of pharmacy professionals as personalised prescribing becomes more widely adopted across the NHS. Find out more about pharmacogenomics by visiting https://sps.nhs.uk/articles/pharmacogenomics-resources-to-support-answering-questions/

Rakhi Aggarwal, Primary Care Lead for NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service, speaks to Natalie Curley, Lead Pharmacist, South West London ICB, about how pharmacogenomics is shaping medicines governance. They discuss its impact on formulary decisions and treatment pathways and explore how ICBs can prepare for the future delivery of personalised medicine. Find out more about pharmacogenomics by visiting https://sps.nhs.uk/articles/pharmacogenomics-resources-to-support-answering-questions/

Rakhi Aggarwal, Primary Care Lead from NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service, speaks to Vicky Chaplin, Senior Clinical Lead, Genomics Unit, NHS England, about about the role of genomics in community pharmacy. The discussion explores pharmacogenomic testing, personalised prescribing, direct-to-consumer genetic tests, and how community pharmacy can support patients as genomic medicine develops within the NHS. Find out more about pharmacogenomics by visiting https://sps.nhs.uk/articles/pharmacogenomics-resources-to-support-answering-questions/

Jenna Murray talks to Ali Cracknell, Philippa Duggan-Carter and Jeremy Robson from Leeds University Hospital NHS trust in this podcast about a time critical medicines quality improvement project that has been successfully implemented and sustained, it is now part of everyday practice. Discussion includes the background to the project, how the team used what could have been a significant roadblock as catalyst for change and how the team knew that new practices had become business as usual. Jenna Murray - Senior Specialist Pharmacy Technician Medication Safety (NHS SPS) Ali Cracknell - Consultant in Acute and Elderly Medicine (Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust) Phillipa Duggan-Carter - Lead Nurse Parkinson's Disease Specialist (Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust) Jeremy Robson - Advanced Clinical Pharmacist for Neurology (Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust)

In this podcast Emma Bryant (Mental Health Lead at NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service) speaks with Dr Rania Ward, Principal Pharmacist for Sleep Medicine, who answers some of the questions posed in the chat during our recent webinar, SMRs in problematic polypharmacy: insomnia focus (14 April 2026). 00.45 - Sleep cycle and shift patterns 03.23 - Cumulative sleep 04.45 - Red flags 10.22 - Treat the underlying cause or start hypnotics 12.34 - Pharmacological options 15.07 - Melatonin 20.11 - Serious mental illness (SMI) and insomnia 22.22 - New medicines for insomnia (daridorexant) 26.46 - Non-pharmacological treatments 31.12 - More information and training Dr Rania Ward; Principal Pharmacist for Sleep Medicine, Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust Emma Bryant; Mental Health Lead, Medicines Use and Safety, NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service Useful links SMRs in problematic polypharmacy: case based discussions https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/smrs-in-problematic-polypharmacy-case-based-discussions/ National Sleep Pharmacy Network https://nspn.co.uk/ RCGP Learning (Insomnia) https://elearning.rcgp.org.uk/course/info.php?id=824 PCPharm (Insomnia Learning Programme) https://courses.learning.rpharms.com/product?catalog=RCP-Clinical-19