With recent data indicating that only one in five people aged 18-40 would visit their pharmacy for advice with minor illnesses, the NHS is launching a new ad campaign to highlight how high-street pharmacies can support patients with non-urgent health conditions.
Coming as part of the health service’s extensive Help Us, Help You campaign, the adverts will run across TV, online video, radio and social media and will look to remind people of the effectiveness and availability of pharmacies when dealing with things like coughs, aches and colds.
The campaign rolls out at the same as more recent statistics show high levels of public satisfaction with local pharmacies, with polling finding that approximately nine in 10 people said they received good advice and had good overall experiences with their pharmacies.
Data from November also showed that 91,785 people with minor illnesses received same-day pharmacy consultations after phoning the NHS’s 111 line or their GP – an increase of 39% from the same month in 2021 when the it was just 66,039 people.
Chief Pharmaceutical Officer, David Webb, said: “Community pharmacies are right in the heart of local communities, and with pharmacists fully trained clinical professionals, they are the perfect place for anybody suffering from a minor illness to get expert advice.
“Pharmacies can offer the convenience of turn up on the day consultations and can help you get any care needed including over-the-counter-medicines. So whether suffering from a cough, earache, itchy eye, or any other minor illness, popping into your local pharmacy is a great way to nip an issue in the bud before it potentially worsens.”
Acting as just the latest campaign aimed at directing patients to the most appropriate service as backlog problems persist, the ads include Earache strikes back, Sore throat and the lost voice, and Night of the itchy eye.
More information on how pharmacies specifically can help is available here.
