Consultation outcome

Proposal for the use of patient group directions by pharmacy technicians

From:: Department of Health and Social Care
Published: 18 August 2023
Last updated: 28 March 2024 — See all updates

Applies to England, Scotland and Wales

Read the full outcome

Proposal to enable pharmacy technicians to supply and administer medicines using patient group directions: consultation response

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Detail of outcome

The consultation sought responses from a wide range of stakeholders on proposals to amend the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 (HMRs) to enable pharmacy technicians to supply and administer medicines using patient group directions (PGDs). The consultation ran for a period of 6 weeks, closing on 29 September 2023.

We received 2,267 responses from a range of organisations, including the General Pharmaceutical Council, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, health service delivery bodies, and from private and not-for-profit organisations.

The feedback from the consultation was positive, with most respondents (84%) in agreement with the proposal to amend the HMRs to enable pharmacy technicians to supply and administer medicines to patients using PGDs.

The consensus amongst respondents was that this would benefit patients, the profession, and the NHS. This included a strong belief that the patient journey would be improved as treatment will be more efficient, reducing delays and freeing up pharmacists’ time.

The role of pharmacy technician in Northern Ireland is not a registered healthcare profession. Therefore, the changes will not currently enable pharmacy technicians in Northern Ireland to use PGDs. However, once pharmacy technicians in Northern Ireland become a registered healthcare profession, a further amendment to the HMRs may be made to permit this.

Given the high level of support for this proposal, the government will progress with legislation to amend the HMRs 2012. This change will apply to England, Wales and Scotland.

Original consultation

Consultation description

The Department of Health and Social Care is consulting jointly with the Department of Health Northern Ireland to seek your views on amending the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 to enable pharmacy technicians to supply and administer medicines using patient group directions (PGDs).

This proposal supports the ambitions of NHS systems across the UK to maximise the use of the skill mix within pharmacy teams, enabling them to meet more of the health needs of their local populations.

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