A WEST Belfast MLA has called for urgent action to ensure patients can avail of vital medication 'blister pack' services in pharmacies.
The service sorts medications to help at-risk patients take them on time and as prescribed.
Pharmacists were forced to halt the service for new patients last year due a lack of funding.
A new £8 million funding package from the Department of Health means patients discharged from hospital from this Monday can once again avail of the blister packs. However, the package does not apply to community referrals, including by pharmacists or GPs.
People Before Profit MLA Gerry Carroll said the impasse means some patients, many who can't administer their own medications, are "falling through the cracks".
He welcomed progress on blister pack prescriptions, but said patients are still "losing out due to lack of investment".
"This is a welcome development, however, it is clear that there are many people in the community who require medication in blister packs but will not avail of it because they have not been recently discharged from hospital," he said.
"This leaves patients in a precarious position, and means families having to take time out to administer medication. This situation is clearly untenable, and I am calling on the Minister for Health to act to urgently commission and properly fund this service, to ensure blister packs are rolled out for everyone in need. This is a basic service that should be provided by the NHS.”
While community referral processes are not yet in place, Gerard Greene, Chief Executive of Community Pharmacy Northern Ireland, said recent funding is an "important first step" in securing services.
"This is a welcome and much needed investment in community pharmacy," he said.
"It comes after two years of a pandemic, where we have clearly seen how important community pharmacy is in supporting patients and enabling them to access a vital health service."
