Rural pharmacies across Oxfordshire worried they may be forced to close
Rural areas in England are at risk of becoming "pharmacy deserts", leaders from the sector have warned.
Last updated 4th Sep 2024
Many pharmacies across Oxfordshire have been forced to close their doors in the last few years amid struggles to funding and mounting pressures on the remaining local pharmacies.
There have been around 10 closures in the County, and a report today has found rural areas are at risk of becoming a "pharmacy desert" forcing people to travel far for prescription.
The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) said closures in rural towns and villages will mean people having to travel further for medication as it urged the Government to reverse budget cuts.
Analysis showed 17 of the 20 council areas with the lowest number of pharmacies per 100,000 people were in rural locations.
Raza Hassani is a Pharmacist in Kidlington who owns Westlake Pharmacy, he said: “The overheads in pharmacy has increased as with most businesses. Now, the problem is that most pharmacies are finding it difficult to pay staff and the overheads whilst our income stream hasn’t gone up.
“Every month as a contractor becomes worrying because you get very close to your limits as the cash flow is not there. As a whole sector, the pharmacy industry needs extra funding.
“If the funding isn’t there, it becomes a struggle for contractors. What will happen is we will see more pharmacies closing down which then increases pressure on the pharmacies that are remaining and the GP surgeries.
In Kidlington, Mr Hassani tells us he’s seen two local pharmacies close just in the last couple of years.
He said: “For us to cater for that, we require extra funding to make sure that you have the adequate amount of staff and resources. So, I think that all the local pharmacies are struggling to cope with the two that have closed.
“I feel that we are not being recognised for all of the services and things that we offer within the NHS sector. So, in a way, I feel that the pharmacy sector gets left behind”.
More deprived council areas also had the highest level of closures in the last two years, the organisation found.
NPA chief executive Paul Rees said: "These shocking statistics show how a growing number of areas are at risk of becoming pharmacy deserts, with people in rural towns and villages having to travel longer and longer distances to get hold of the medication they need.
"Many pharmacies are on the brink because of a decade of real term cuts, creating a material threat to the security of medicine supply in some areas if closures continue.
"It is also deeply concerning to see higher levels of pharmacy closures in deprived council areas, which has undermined government efforts to tackle health inequalities after the pandemic."
The NPA analysis also found one or more pharmacies have closed in 87% of council areas in England in the last two years.
The organisation has urged the Government to reverse what it describes as a 40% real-terms cut to the pharmacy budget in the last decade.