Online training for pharmacists proves huge success

NHS Hampshire approached the Wessex HIEC to support them in the development of an online training and verification package for the appropriate use of EHC for community pharmacists. This online facility allows pharmacists to complete the training as necessary as opposed to waiting to attend a PCT evening training session.

There was also public information about accessing contraceptive services through community pharmacists. The key focus of the work was about working with young people under 25 years; however, the EHC community pharmacy service is available to women of all ages.

The performance criteria has been achieved and exceeded. There were two key targets – first, to train 100 pharmacists and to have them deliver EHC services and second, to achieve this by putting in place an effective delivery infrastructure. By the beginning of June 2013 over 300 pharmacists have been trained, 226 of these from Hampshire. This equates to 170 pharmacies delivering the service.

 A questionnaire on the effectiveness of the project has been conducted with 80 community pharmacists who took part in the training. Headlines are:

94% of respondents thought the e-learning easy or very easy to use.

95% of respondents thought the podcast were either good or very good.

Over 90% of respondents thought the training module prepared pharmacists to deliver the EHC service.