On 22nd July, Visions4Health held its inaugural fireside chat with members of our newly formed Health Care System Council. The topic discussed was Addressing Health Inequalities in Medicines Optimisation and the panel included: a GP Partner and ICB GP Clinical Lead; an ICS Chief Pharmacist and Director of Medicines Optimisation; a GP Partner and Health Inequalities Lead and a Clinical Pharmacy Services Manager, Outpatients.
The key insights that emerged from the discussion were:
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- Having a population health lens to medicines optimisation is crucial for Integrated Care Systems (ICSs) to ensure that medication strategies are tailored to the specific health needs of diverse communities. It is essential to address how early the ICS reaches the lower socioeconomic groups and ethnic minorities.
- The role of data analytics and insights is critical to identify gaps and trends at a population level to improve access to medicines and services. Through data analytics, ICSs can tailor interventions to meet specific needs of different populations, particularly underserved groups.
- When managing the medicines budget, it is crucial to view it as a single entity across the ICS. This means holistically considering the impact of both prescribing and administering medicines. By getting this right, the entire system stands to gain, and significant benefits can be unlocked.
- Patient groups provide a useful gateway into decision making to reduce health inequalities in medicines optimisation. Amending the decision-making framework to include patient groups/patient voice is a way of considering local place variation. Life sciences have a significant role to play in this space.
- Medicines optimisation is not just about pharmacy, but the need to engage wider stakeholders in reducing health inequalities. Targeted interventions can be developed through fostering collaboration across various sectors. It was observed that finance stakeholders are increasingly being involved in medicines optimisation conversations at a system level.
- There is a pressing need to transform the tone of conversation between the NHS and the life sciences sector from an ‘us and them’ mentality to a more collegiate approach focused on NHS priorities at a local system level.
What is a Visions4Health fireside chat and how can I participate?
Throughout 2024, Visions4Health will be hosting a series of virtual fireside chats – informal yet structured discussions between a Visions4Health moderator and specific healthcare system stakeholders that sit on Visions4Health’s Healthcare System Council. At each session a ‘hot topic’ relevant to both the NHS and life sciences sector will be discussed under Chatham House rules. Selected industry attendees will have the opportunity to debate, question, challenge, ideate and gain real world advice and insight from those at the ‘coal face’.
If you would like to join future fireside chats, please complete the Contact Form on our website. Visit here to find out more about the Visions4Health Healthcare System Council.