PROPOSALS to ban doctors' surgeries from dispensing medicines have been labelled 'disastrous' by villagers in Linton.
The suggestion has come from a Government report.
Currently, residents who live more than a mile from their GP practice can get prescriptions from the practice, but that radius could be extended under new plans, meaning more people would have to u
se pharmacies.
The news is of particular concern to people in rural south Cambridgeshire, with one calling the proposals potentially 'disastrous' for villagers who struggle to reach Linton, Haverhill or Cambridge because of poor public transport links.
Villagers more than a mile away from Linton Health Centre can get their prescription drugs from the centre, rather than going to a pharmacy.
West Wickham parish councillor Andrew Morris said it 'could be disastrous for a community several miles away from any shopping centre that has a pharmacy'.
He said: "There is one in Linton High Street, close to the health centre.
"This serves the large number of people living in Linton because the health centre pharmacy is already not allowed to dispense to them.
"People in West Wickham enjoy a 'one-stop shop' – they see their doctor, receive a prescription and collect their medication all in one go."
The Government must consider a number of options: leave things as they are, let the local PCT decide or hand the decision to the Government.
Sue Ashwell, chief pharmacist for NHS Cambridgeshire, said: "Every patient should have access to a full pharmaceutical service."
The health centre practice has written to patients saying: "We cannot see how removing the health centre's right to dispense medicines is in the best interests of the local community."
n Write to Sue Ashwell, chief pharmacist, Cambridgeshire PCT, Heron Court, Ida Darwin, Fulbourn, Cambridge, CB21 5EE, by November 20.
derek.bish@haverhillecho.com
The full article contains 303 words and appears in Haverhill Echo newspaper.
