Pharmacy: Standards
The question
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of Pharmacy First on (a) patient satisfaction, (b) GP access and (c) pharmacy outcomes.
Answered by Stephen Kinnock
Pharmacies deliver a wide range of National Health Services, including Pharmacy First, that relieve pressure on general practices (GPs) and other parts of the NHS and help patients access healthcare advice, treatment, and preventative interventions more easily.
A National Institute for Health and Care Research funded evaluation of Pharmacy First will assess how the service has been implemented across England, including impacts on prescribing in the GP setting, use of hospitals, and how the service has impacted access to care and the cost for different patient groups.
According to the latest available data, 29 January 2026, from the Health Insights Survey, 89.2% of respondents reported they were satisfied with the most recent NHS service they received at a pharmacy.
To date, over 4.5 million Pharmacy First clinical pathway consultations have been delivered. NHS England will continue to keep the Pharmacy First service under review.
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