Patients face long journeys for medicines as pharmacies cut weekend hours | NHS

People who need to obtain medication on weekends must undertake long journeys as more and more pharmacies reduce their opening hours on Saturday and Sunday.

One in six pharmacies in England have reduced their weekend opening hours since 2022, with some even closing completely, due to “unsustainable” pressure on their budgets.

The reductions mean that in total, more than 20% of weekend operating hours have been lost, making pharmacy services increasingly unavailable, according to the National Pharmacy Association (NPA).

This required some patients to go to an emergency center or urgent treatment center to get the morning-after pill, an emergency prescription, or advice on how to treat a minor illness.

Rural areas such as Devon, Cornwall and the Lake District were particularly hard hit, although in cities such as Manchester and Leeds there were also fewer openings at weekends, the NPA said.

He cites the fact that St Ives, Cornwall, had three pharmacies, one of which opened at weekends. But two of them have closed their doors and the only pharmacy still in operation does not operate on Saturdays or Sundays. Town residents who need help must now travel to Hayle or Penzance.

Similarly, people in Windermere, Cumbria, have to drive 10 miles to the nearest pharmacy, which is open on Sundays, which takes 25 minutes by car or 45 minutes by public transport.

Patient groups said the trend had left disabled people, shift workers and those without cars or good public transport links struggling to access the medicines they need at weekends.

NPA chief executive Olivier Picard said: “This is further evidence that the pharmacy network in England is crumbling after facing deep budget cuts for several years. Sadly, the real losers are the millions of patients these pharmacies serve, particularly those in rural areas, who are forced to travel long distances or even go to hospital if they need a prescription or advice for a minor health problem on a Sunday or late at night.”

Rebecca Curtayne, head of public affairs at Healthwatch England, the NHS patient watchdog, said: “People rely on their local pharmacy for timely advice and essential medicines, so reductions in weekend opening hours are very worrying. We are already hearing about people taking longer journeys to find an open pharmacy, particularly in rural areas, and this is creating real difficulties for people with reduced mobility or without access to transport.

“It’s no surprise that some people end up turning to other NHS services when they can’t get the help they need in their community.”

Around 1,550 pharmacies in England have closed since 2017, also as a direct result of government underfunding of pharmacy services, the NPA said. The money they received from the NHS – for issuing prescriptions, providing vaccines and other services – has fallen by 40% in real terms since 2016, leaving many unable to operate the opening hours they previously had, he adds.

The difficulty for patients in accessing pharmaceutical care this weekend risks compromising the government’s objective of strengthening local care, the Patients’ Association said. Rachel Power, its chief executive, said: “When pharmacies close or reduce opening hours, patients pay the price. In some cases, the local pharmacy is the only port of call for patients in need.

“For shift workers, for those living in deprived areas, for anyone without a car or good public transport, the local pharmacy is a lifeline that can avoid unnecessary trips to see a GP or to hospital. When the door to the local pharmacy closes, the door to healthcare often closes with it. This is unacceptable. The Government’s ambition to bring care closer to home needs a local pharmacy to work.”

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “Community pharmacies are a vital gateway to the NHS, which is why this Government has provided them with the biggest funding increase of any part of the NHS over the last two years – reaching a total of £3.1 billion.

“We are currently consulting with Community Pharmacy England on funding arrangements for next year and will continue to ensure that hard-working pharmacists can offer patients more care closer to home as part of our 10-year health plan.”