CONCERNS for the future management and support of pharmacies, were last week put to local West Devon and Torridge MP Geoffrey Cox at a meeting in Bere Alston.

The MP was invited to the Bere Peninsula Pharmacy in Bere Alston to meet pharmacist Ian Peacock and his staff and William Cockburn from the Devon Local Pharmaceutical Committee. He saw the Pharmacy at work and discussed the new coalition government's white paper on 'Equity and excellence: Liberating the NHS'.

The MP was shown the consultation room in which the pharmacy provides extra services such as medicine use reviews, advice to quit smoking, and emergency hormonal contraception.

Geoffrey Cox was also shown the 'picking' process of medicines, and the computer system which is currently used.

The White Paper proposes a wide range of changes to the operation and management of the NHS, including a reduction in management costs over the next four years by more than 45%.

The pharmacists were keen to see how the role of pharmacies in providing the extra local services would feature in the new arrangements.

Mr Cox said he would raise the subject with the Secretary of State for Health, and with the chief executive of the Devon PCT to encourage forward planning as to how they will hand over the role of supporting pharmacies to the new Commissioning Board.

He said: 'This meeting was extremely useful. It has given me the opportunity to listen to the views of local pharmacists who will be directly affected by the changes the Government make to the structure of the NHS. '