Last week the North East London Local Pharmaceutical Committee contacted Jon Cruddas MP for Dagenham and Rainham regarding the future of the Minor Ailments Service (MAS). The MAS is currently commissioned until March 2019 and was designed to serve vulnerable populations in order to reduce the burden on GPs and Accident and Emergency Departments.
Minor Ailments are defined as conditions that require little or no medical intervention and are usually manageable through self-care and over the counter products. In North East London consulting and advising on the treatment of minor ailments has always been a core service provided by community pharmacists.
The future of MAS is uncertain but the North East London Local Pharmaceutical Committee are campaigning for the service to be retained and improved or for a suitable alternative to be put in place.
Jon Cruddas MP has thrown his support behind their campaign which recommends that a commissioned walk-in service continues to offer support for vulnerable patients, and that NHSE London identify a revised plan that supports patients and emergency care in conjunction with the Clinical Commissioning Groups.
Click HERE to see the new/improved proposal for the Minor Ailments Service.
Jon Cruddas commented: "I'm am completely opposed to the decommissioning of the Minor Ailments Service without a suitable alternative in place. The proposals put forward by the NEL LPC outline an improved model which would ensure that the most vulnerable in our area still get support with minor ailments at the point of contact with the local Pharmacies.
"One of the main worries for me is the extra strain the loss of this service would put on our already overstretched local NHS. We all know the issues surrounding our Accident and Emergency Departments, and this valuable community service, if lost would create more pressure on the remaining services including our GPs."