Pharmacy First
The NHS Pharmacy First allows you and your loved ones to get health advice and treatment including prescription medicines, where appropriate from our expert pharmacists. They can then provide NHS treatments for:
- Earache or Infection (Otitis Media) (1–17 years)
- Impetigo (Skin Rash) (1 year and older)
- Infected insect bites and stings (1 year and older)
- Shingles (18 years and over)
- Sinusitis (Sinus Infection) (12 years and over)
- Sore throat (5 years and over)
- Uncomplicated urinary tract infections (UTI) in women (16-64 years)
We can provide you the same treatments you would get from a GP.
How the NHS Pharmacy First Service can help you
What are the benefits of Pharmacy First?
Pharmacy First will help you get seen by a healthcare professional quickly.
Instead of waiting for a GP appointment, going to A&E or attending out-of-hours NHS services, you can walk into your nearest Pharmacy and have a private consultation with one of our pharmacists whenever you need to.
Pharmacists have a range of clinical skills, and they will be able to provide accurate clinical advice without the hassle and waiting times that you might experience using other NHS services like A&E.
If it turns out you need treatment from a GP, your pharmacist can also refer you to them.
Who is eligible for Pharmacy First?
Only patients in England will be eligible for the Pharmacy First service.
What will the pharmacist ask during my consultation?
Our pharmacist will want to understand:
- The symptoms you're experiencing
- Your medical history
- If you're experiencing any other types of illness.
This will help them recommend treatments and medicines that will work for you.
Will I need to prove that I don't have to pay for my prescriptions?
If you are exempt from paying for prescriptions, you should show your pharmacists evidence of this when you speak to them. They will need it if they recommend any medicines to treat your symptoms.
Ear Infection (Otitis Media)
If your child has pain in the ear, they may have an infection (Otitis Media). Bring them into the Pharmacy to speak to the Pharmacist. This service is for children aged one year to seventeen years.
The symptoms of an ear infection usually start quickly and include:
- pain inside the ear
- a high temperature
- being sick
- a lack of energy
- difficulty hearing
- discharge running out of the ear
- a feeling of pressure or fullness inside the ear
- itching and irritation in and around the ear
- scaly skin in and around the ear
- Young children and babies with an ear infection may also:
- rub or pull their ear
- not react to some sounds
- be irritable or restless
- be off their food
- keep losing their balance
Impetigo
Patients aged one year and above can receive treatment for impetigo. This includes patients who have recurrent impetigo. If you think you or your child has impetigo, visit the Pharmacy today.
Impetigo is a skin infection that's very contagious but not usually serious.
It often gets better in 7 to 10 days if you get treatment. Anyone can get it, but it's very common in young children.
Impetigo starts with red sores or blisters, but the redness may be harder to see in brown and black skin. The sores or blisters quickly burst and leave crusty, golden-brown patches.
The patches can:
- look a bit like corn flakes stuck to your skin
- get bigger
- spread to other parts of your body
- be itchy
- sometimes be painful
Infected Insect Bite
Patients aged one year and over who have an infected insect bite can receive support from the Pharmacist and team. If you have been bitten and the bite area is red, itchy, tender or swollen, visit the pharmacy today.
The main symptoms of an insect bite or sting are:
- pain where you were bitten or stung
- a small, swollen lump on the skin
- The lump may look red. It may be more difficult to see on black or brown skin, but you should be able to feel it.
Shingles
This service is available for adults aged 18 years and over. Patients presenting with shingles could be eligible for medication supply.
The first signs of shingles can be:
- a tingling or painful feeling in an area of skin
- a headache or feeling generally unwell
A rash will usually appear a few days later. In rare cases shingles can cause pain without a rash.
Usually you get the shingles rash on your chest and tummy, but it can appear anywhere on your body including on your face, eyes and genitals.
The rash appears as blotches on your skin, on 1 side of your body only. A rash on both the left and right of your body is unlikely to be shingles.
Sinus Infection (Sinusitis)
This service is available for adults and children aged 12 years of age and over. If you are suffering with a blocked nose and sinus pain the Pharmacist and their team will be able to help.
Sinusitis is common after a cold or flu. The main symptoms of sinusitis include:
- pain, swelling and tenderness around your cheeks, eyes or forehead
- a blocked or runny nose
- a reduced sense of smell
- green or yellow mucus from your nose
- a high temperature
Other symptoms include:
- a headache
- toothache
- bad breath
- a cough
- a feeling of pressure in the ears
You may also snore at night and sound nasal when you speak.
Young children may also be irritable, have difficulty feeding and breathe through their mouth.
Sore Throat
Adults and children over five years of age can access support from the Pharmacist and team if they have a sore throat alongside a fever.
You can ask a pharmacist to evaluate you.
After which they can share ways of relieving the pain and discomfort of a sore throat, such as:
- paracetamol or ibuprofen
- medicated lozenges containing a local anaesthetic, antiseptic, or anti-inflammatory medicine
- anaesthetic spray (although there's little proof they help)
A pharmacist can also provide other treatments if you need them, without you seeing a GP.
Urinary Tract Infections
This service is available to women aged 16 to 64 years with a suspected lower urinary tract infection. If you have burning when passing urine, needing to urinate during the night or your urine is cloudy you may be eligible for the pharmacy first service where the pharmacist can provide medication.
Symptoms of a urinary tract infection (UTI) may include:
- pain or a burning sensation when peeing (dysuria)
- needing to pee more often than usual
- needing to pee more often than usual during the night (nocturia)
- needing to pee suddenly or more urgently than usual
pee that looks cloudy - blood in your pee
- lower tummy pain or pain in your back, just under the ribs
- a high temperature, or feeling hot and shivery
- a very low temperature below 36C
Your pee may also be dark or smell. If this is your only symptom, it might be because you've not been drinking enough water.