Hi i'm Andy I'm one of the Pharmacists at the Great Yarmouth Store, I'm here to talk
to you a little bit about NMS, the new medicine service, we're going to be going over all
parts of the service and what you can do to help us.
The new medicine service, NMS, is a service we provide for patients starting a new medication
for one of the conditions listed on your screen now.
People often have problems when they start a new medication, NMS allows us to support
those patients with any problems they may face in those initial weeks.
Our aim is to help patients take their medication safely and more effectively.
This in turn results in savings for the NHS, whilst improving our patients quality of life.
The service is made of three main stages,
Initially you have the engagement stage, which is when we speak to the patient before they
start taking their medication We’ll see if they’re eligible for NMS
and ask if they’re interested in the service.
We’ll obtain their written consent, and agree on the best way we can contact them.
This can be on the phone or in person.
The intervention stage is 1-2 weeks after starting the new medication.
The pharmacist will speak with the patient about how they take their medcine, and identify
any barriers which prevent them from taking it.
This is where the pharmacist can give advice to the patient, and if anything serious has
come up, they can be referred to the GP.
Now if they’re going to continue with the medication, they'll agree a time for the follow
up stage.
The follow up stage is 2-3 weeks after the intervention stage.
It’s a similar conversation to the intervention stage, but the pharmacist will follow up anything
any prior issues They’ll reinforce the benefits of the medicine,
and ensure it’s being taken as prescribed.
Again, at any point if any issues that arisen since the intervention, they can still be
referred to the GP.
The engagement stage is where you can really help us.
Identifying and signing patients up for NMS can be undertaken by anyone in the pharmacy.
Every time you sign a patient up for NMS, you give them the best possible chance of
getting the most benefit from that medicine.
To help demonstrate this we’ll be following Rob.
He’s been prescribed a new inhaler for his asthma.
So when rob hands in a prescription, we’ll ask him one simple question
“Are any of these medications new for you?”
In this case, Rob has a new inhaler, so we’ll place a small star to the right hand side
of the new drug.
This highlights to the pharmacist what medicines are new.
To give you a better idea of what medication is eligible for NMS, let’s go to the dispensary.
So here's some medication you might see under NMS.
So you're looking for inhalers, that's for Asthma or COPD
Got your blood pressure medication there, your antiplatelet or anticoagulation medication
And finally, medication used for type two diabetes
Doesn't matter if you don't know all the medication under NMS, but it's great if you know some
Rob’s been prescribed a new salbutamol inhaler, this medication is eligible for NMS, so we’ll
check if he’s using it for a target condition Are you using this for Asthma?
Yes, I am,
So after confirming the medication is for a target condition, and it’s within NMS,
you can sign them up!
Now ensure you explain the consent form to the patient, speak to your pharmacy manager
for a more detailed explanation of this.
If they’re happy to continue, ensure they sign and date the form, then confirm their
phone number, or agree on a good time to come into the pharmacy.
But what if you haven’t seen the patient?
If you’re labelling their medication, a quick glance at their records may indicate
if it’s new.
If you think it is, star the medication on the prescription and add a consent form to
the basket if you think it might be an NMS.
When the pharmacist hands out the medication, they will be able to confirm if the patient
is eligible to take part in the new medicines service.
Rob has not had this inhaler before so the pharmacist will discuss things with him like
the benefits and side effects
And In one to two weeks’ time, we’ill give him a call, and see how he is getting
along.
Something as simple as a phone call could make a huge difference to someone’s health.
Rob’s asthma is under far better control thanks to NMS, turns out he wasn’t using
the inhaler as intended.
Thanks to the new medicine service, he is making far greater gains from his medication.
But Rob’s not alone, data shows that nearly 1 in 5 patients aren’t taking their medication
as prescribed at the intervention stage.
Thanks to the new medicine service, by the follow up stage 2-3 weeks later, this number
reduces to nearly 1 in 10.
We want to be able to support as many patients like Rob as we can, as they start their own
journey with a new medicine.
That’s why we need your help.
Every patient we identify and sign up for NMS, is a step towards ensuring our patients
are receiving the best healthcare possible.
We do it because we care.
And It all starts by asking one simple question.