General Pharmaceutical Council. Strategic plan

Transcription

1 General Pharmaceutical Council Strategic plan

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3 General Pharmaceutical Council Strategic plan Strategic Plan presented to Parliament and the Scottish Parliament Pursuant to Paragraph 8 of Schedule 1 to the Pharmacy Order 2010

4 General Pharmaceutical Council 2015 The text of this document (but not the logo and branding) may be reproduced free of charge in any format or medium, as long as it is reproduced accurately and not in a misleading context. This material must be acknowledged as General Pharmaceutical Council copyright and the document title given. If we have quoted third-party material, you must get permission from the copyright holder. If you have any questions about this document please communications@pharmacyregulation.org or phone our customer contact centre on You can also read and download this document on our website at General Pharmaceutical Council

5 Contents 1 Foreword by the chair and chief executive 2 Our mission 3 Our vision 4 What we do 5 Our strategic approach 8 Our key strategic aims for Strategic plan

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7 Foreword by the chair and chief executive Our strategic plan summarises what we see as the key challenges for pharmacy and what our role should be as the pharmacy regulator in responding to those challenges on behalf of patients and the public. As the role of pharmacy grows over time, we must continually challenge ourselves to regulate and carry out the functions given to us by the UK and Scottish Parliaments on behalf of patients and the public in a way which remains effective. In our strategic plan we give our mission and our vision for pharmacy regulation. But we go further than this by describing the context in which we operate. This document sets out some of the challenges we see for pharmacy and the implications for us in the changing roles of our registrants. In particular we build on four themes fundamental to our work: promoting a culture of patient-centred professionalism; putting patients and the public at the heart of what we do; delivering effective and efficient regulation; and keeping pace with changes in pharmacy. This, in turn, has helped us identify our four key strategic aims for By working to achieve these aims, through the delivery of our corporate plan, we aim to make a positive contribution to patient safety and also to encourage improvements to care and pharmacy services delivered by pharmacists and pharmacy technicians both in registered pharmacies and in other settings. Nigel Clarke Chair Duncan Rudkin Chief Executive and Registrar Strategic plan

8 Our mission Our statutory objective is: To protect, promote and maintain the health, safety and wellbeing of members of the public and in particular of those members of the public who use or need the services of registrants, or the services provided at or from a registered pharmacy, by ensuring that registrants, and those persons carrying on a retail pharmacy business at a registered pharmacy, adhere to such standards as the council considers necessary for the safe and effective practice of pharmacy. 2 General Pharmaceutical Council

9 Our vision Our vision is for pharmacy regulation to play its part in improving quality of which safety is a critical element in pharmacy practice and ultimately health and wellbeing in England, Scotland and Wales. Strategic plan

10 What we do We have these core statutory functions: setting the standards of education and training which pharmacists and pharmacy technicians must meet in order to join our register and to remain registered throughout their professional life registering pharmacists and pharmacy technicians and setting the standards of conduct and performance which they must meet to stay on our register setting standards which must be met by the owners of registered pharmacies and the pharmacists who act as superintendents in company-owned pharmacies registering pharmacies which meet those standards and inspecting them to check that they continue to do so, as the services they provide and the environment within which they operate constantly change taking action when our standards are not met These functions are the essential levers available to us to achieve our aims. We aim to carry out these functions efficiently and effectively so that we can also make our contribution to improving pharmacy by: using standards to set out clearly what is expected of registrants providing assurance to patients and the public about what they have a right to expect from pharmacists and pharmacy technicians and when using services from registered pharmacies making good use of what we learn about pharmacy from carrying out our functions and what we learn about pharmacy from others to support and enable improvement over time speaking out to influence pharmacy, and pharmacy-related policy development, in line with our vision providing a regulatory framework within which professionalism can flourish 4 General Pharmaceutical Council

11 Our strategic approach The context and our priorities In our strategic plan for we described some of the major health and care challenges we all face and some of the implications these have for pharmacy and for us, as the pharmacy regulator. We repeated our commitment to: embedding learning from the highprofile reports into failures in care in the NHS and care system across Great Britain, and using our regulatory levers to encourage others to do likewise We also highlighted the statements made by ministers across Great Britain. These gave welcome support to the role of pharmacy in meeting public health challenges. This changing role places more demands on us as the regulator, and in particular we highlighted that we needed to: use our privileged position as a regulator of both individual professionals and of pharmacy services provided from registered pharmacies to share data, knowledge, information and insight into how pharmacy is changing, so that positive developments and innovation can be shared, and risks identified and mitigated focus always on the needs of patients who are cared for by pharmacy professionals and who receive advice, services and care from registered pharmacies promote professionalism and the delivery of compassionate and patientcentred care We have made progress in each of these areas. But there is much more to be done and we have refined and updated our strategic plan to reflect the context and our priorities. review the knowledge and skills that are required of the pharmacy team of the future and how our standards for the initial education and training of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians will need to change to address those Strategic plan

12 Our strategic approach Promoting a culture of patient-centred professionalism Encouraging and supporting the professionalism of the pharmacy team and promoting a culture of openness and candour which focuses on what matters to patients is fundamental to the GPhC s regulatory approach and our strategy. We remain of the view that it is the professionalism of members of the pharmacy team which has the greatest influence on the quality and safety of services to the public and on patient care. Regulation alone cannot create professionalism. But we can by working with others help to create an environment in which professionalism can flourish. In April 2015 we launched an important discussion document which states clearly the importance we place on patient-centred professionalism. This will remain a key theme for the GPhC over the course of this strategic plan. Putting people and patients at the heart of what we do Our last strategic plan highlighted our aim to embed patient engagement in designing our policies and procedures. It is fundamental to the GPhC s regulatory approach that our policies and standards are focused on what matters to patients, carers and the public and informed by the reality of the working life of pharmacy professionals, and in the case of registered pharmacy standards, the owners. The high-profile failures of care we referred to last year show what happens not only when professionals and organisations forget what really matters, but when regulators lose sight of outcomes for patients and focus on process. We must take into account the lessons from other parts of the health sector and make sure we focus on what matters to patients and users of pharmacy services. We will ensure we involve patients and the public in the development of all our regulatory policies, especially our standards. We will also make sure that we are continuously looking at ways in which we can test and evaluate the impact of our policies on the users of pharmacy services in whose interests we regulate. Delivering effective and efficient regulation The GPhC is in the privileged position of having statutory powers to generate fee income from registrants and pharmacy owners in order to set, uphold and enforce standards on behalf of patients and the public. Our responsibility is, therefore, to ensure we are keeping our costs as low as we can and keeping proportionate the burdens placed on registrants while continuing to meet the changing needs of patients and the public. Part of this focus is about our cost base; but it is much more than that. It is about constantly challenging ourselves about whether we can do things in a better way which has more impact. Delivering proactive, good-quality regulatory services is not just desirable but an absolute requirement given the trend of increased numbers of complaints received by the GPhC about the fitness to practise of registrants. We need to understand 6 General Pharmaceutical Council

13 better the reasons for this trend, which is consistent with trends seen by other healthcare regulators, ensuring that we respond effectively and appropriately. We need to constantly review and evaluate the way we regulate so that we are not placing unnecessary burdens on those we regulate. It is about working better with others so that we avoid duplication in regulation, and can also identify any gaps. Good regulation must always aim to be efficient and effective. But in the present economic climate we think it is right that we place extra emphasis on this in our strategic plan. Keeping pace with changes in pharmacy There is much debate, led by governments and those in leadership positions in the health sector, about the way in which pharmacy is changing and must develop if the needs of patients and the public are to be met in the future. It is our responsibility to listen to governments across Great Britain, to the NHS and other employers, to registrants and to patients. We have to do this if we are to make sure our standards are fit not just for today, but for a future in which the health and care sector in England, Scotland and Wales will require more of pharmacy professionals. And this is wider than just the NHS and NHS service provision. Provision of pharmacy services will increasingly move out of traditional settings, for example into care homes, domiciliary care settings as well as new models of provision in primary care. Pharmacy professionals and employers both in secondary and community pharmacy will therefore be working increasingly with local authorities and with social care providers. Our updated strategic plan reflects the potential for these changes and how we will keep our regulation up to date and fit for the future. We do not set public policy, we cannot run ahead of public policy, but nor can we ignore the change that is happening and only react after change has come. This requirement is most clearly demonstrated with education standards, the outcomes from which only become a reality in any significant scale years after they are implemented, when students and trainees complete their initial education and training. Our strategic plan also focuses on the way pharmacy services are changing and explains how we will ensure regulation keeps pace with those changes. These changes may be organisational with much emphasis from governments across Great Britain for better intra- and inter-professional working in primary, secondary and other care settings but also could involve the growing influence of technological changes. The use of technology can act positively to encourage better communication, to improve efficiency, quality of care and support a focus on outcomes. But it also has risks which need to be managed appropriately, whether those are risks about personal data and data security, or the need to ensure the public are making informed choices supported by good clinical advice. Strategic plan

14 Our key strategic aims for This document, our strategic plan for , is the foundation for our suite of corporate documents. It sets out the key aims for the GPhC that will drive our work in the next two to three years. Our regulatory approach is focused on outcomes for patients and the public. We want the outcomes of regulation to have a positive impact on public and patient health and wellbeing. We also want to be a regulator that challenges itself to be efficient and effective; to use evidence in our policy development; to continuously evaluate our approach; and to regulate effectively today, while preparing for the future. To achieve this we will focus on the issues set out in this document and specifically on the following four key aims: 1 Delivering efficient and effective regulatory services 2 Ensuring the pharmacy team is able to meet the needs of patients now and in the future 3 Using the knowledge gained from our regulatory services and from our work with others in order to promote improvement in the quality of pharmacy care and services 4 Enhancing our understanding of issues, risks and opportunities in pharmacy so that pharmacy regulation is flexible and adapts quickly to the needs of patients and to the risks within the sector 8 General Pharmaceutical Council

15 Strategic aim 1 Delivering efficient and effective regulatory services Delivering efficient and effective regulatory services means that we deliver our core regulatory services in a way which focuses on quality and improvement, ensuring we challenge ourselves to innovate and find better and more efficient ways of carrying out our work, while keeping a firm focus on our cost base. In the timescale covered by this strategic plan we will: make further measurable progress to resolve concerns about the fitness to practise of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians more quickly respond effectively and appropriately to the rising number of concerns raised with us about the fitness to practise of registrants continue to drive improvements in the quality of decision-making, for example through revised guidance and improved training for fitness to practise panels build on work already well advanced to promote information sharing, joint working and effective operational partnerships with healthcare providers, the NHS, commissioners (where relevant), regulators and other relevant bodies throughout Great Britain to identify and tackle issues and risks to patients and prevent unnecessary duplication in regulation continue to review our model for the regulation of pharmacies, through recognised evaluation techniques, so that we are maximising efficiency in the collection and use of data and that our inspection model is optimally designed to assure the public and contribute to improvement of standards develop enhanced performance measures for our registration processes so that we are as efficient as possible, using technology to enhance the experience of our registrants and minimise process costs Strategic plan

16 Our key strategic aims for Strategic aim 2 Ensure the pharmacy team is able to meet the needs of patients now and in the future We recognise that the fast-changing nature of healthcare in general and pharmacy in particular means that we need to review our professional, education and pharmacy standards and guidance. We need to consider not just what the needs of patients are today, but what their needs will be in five years time and beyond, recognising that the skills and competencies of registrants will need to grow; and the settings in which they work will change. In the timescale covered by this strategic plan we will: review our core professional, education and pharmacy standards, and the guidance which underpins them, to ensure that they reflect: our focus on outcomes; the changing nature of healthcare; our desire to take a joined-up approach to professional and systems regulation; and the roles of others, such as professional leadership and representative bodies ensure the development of new standards for the education and training of pharmacy professionals, and the quality assurance process underpinning them, take full account of the wider needs of society and of public health challenges build on GPhC-led debates on professionalism and the education of the pharmacy team to ensure we test key requirements and embed them into our standards development. This work will include promotion of patient-centred professionalism, good communication skills and effective team working continue to develop our proposals for the assurance of registrants continuing fitness to practise, ensuring that we are focused on proposals which are properly tested, make a positive contribution to the professionalism of registrants and meet our wider strategic goal for improved efficiency and effectiveness ensure patient and public outcomes are embedded in our work to develop new professional and education standards and that engagement with all stakeholders including both patients and the professions shapes our standards 10 General Pharmaceutical Council

17 Strategic aim 3 Using the knowledge gained from our regulatory services and from our work with others in order to promote improvement in the quality of pharmacy care and services We see insight from data, information and intelligence as fundamental to the achievement of good regulatory outcomes. Our statutory position as the pharmacy regulator means we hold a lot of data and information. Enhancing our organisational capability and capacity in this area will inform debates within pharmacy and healthcare, promote standards in pharmacy, identify areas where the sector needs to improve and enable us to improve our own performance. In the timescale covered by this strategic plan we will: continue to invest for the future in our organisational capacity and capability in the capturing, handling and analysing of data increasingly use data analysis to support improved operational effectiveness and reporting to external stakeholders about our core regulatory functions develop further our capability to share information and intelligence, in a quality assured and appropriate manner, with other regulatory bodies and organisations with a role in patient safety to support our aim of keeping regulatory burdens to a minimum while also better identifying any gaps in regulation periodically publish key reports on learning from our work, supporting our commitment to transparency, including: fitness to practise; standards of pharmacies and inspection; education and training Strategic plan

18 Our key strategic aims for Strategic aim 4 Enhance our understanding of issues, risks and opportunities in pharmacy so that pharmacy regulation is flexible and adapts quickly to the needs of patients and to the risks within the sector As the pharmacy regulator, we must ensure we understand risks and issues within pharmacy, either through the analysis of our own regulatory intelligence, or from external research. This is so we can constantly review the effectiveness and impact of our regulatory approach, and how it needs to adapt to the changes in pharmacy including new settings, the use of technology, and developments in models of care. In the timescale covered by this strategic plan we will: invest in targeted research and evaluation which can inform policy development, operational improvement and longer-term planning continue to monitor and commission research which looks at pharmacy, in particular at those issues around quality and safety directly relevant to regulation develop further our engagement with patients and the public, employers, representative groups (such as the professional leadership bodies) and the education sector. We will use this strategic engagement to ensure we understand the needs of our stakeholders and are using intelligence effectively in our policy development work closely with governments, the NHS in England, Scotland and Wales, as well as with local government and other commissioners and providers of health and care to ensure we understand fully how the role of pharmacy and the pharmacy team is changing ensure that our regulatory work and engagement with others takes full account of emerging risks and opportunities as well as divergence in delivery of healthcare and legislative structures across Great Britain 12 General Pharmaceutical Council

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20 This document is also available to download from our website in English and Welsh at: If you are seeking this document in other formats, please contact our communications team at General Pharmaceutical Council 25 Canada Square London E14 5LQ Telephone: