Think Pharmacy First
Advice and treatment
Pharmacists can give you advice on a range of conditions and suggest medicines that can help.
They may also be able to offer treatment and some prescription medicine for some conditions, without you needing to see a GP (this is called Pharmacy First).
Conditions they can treat as part of Pharmacy First are:
- Earache (aged 1 to 17 years)
- Sore throat (aged 5 years and over)
- Impetigo – a contagious skin infection (aged 1 year and over)
- Sinusitis – infection of the sinuses (aged 12 years and over)
- Shingles – infection that causes a painful rash (aged 18 years and over)
- Urinary tract infections / UTIs (women aged 16 to 64 years)
- Infected insect bites (aged 1 year and over)
The pharmacist will offer you advice, treatment or refer you to a GP or another healthcare professional if needed. They will update your GP health record.
If you are not within these age ranges, a pharmacist can still offer advice, but you may need to see a GP for treatment.
Please complete the digital triage on the link below to see if your condition is appropriate for self referral.
Please note on weekends online self-referral may take longer as the practice is closed and will not look at your assessment till we are pen, for quicker response please walk into your local pharmacy.
Find a Pharmacy: https://www.nhs.uk/service-search/pharmacy/find-a-pharmacy
Getting the contraceptive pill without a prescription
You may be able to get the contraceptive pill from a pharmacy if you need to:
- Start the contraceptive pill for the first time
- Take the contraceptive pill again after a break from using it
If you already have a prescription for the contraceptive pill, you can use the prescription as usual. Or you can get the pill from a pharmacy without a prescription if you prefer. Click here to find a pharmacy that offers the contraceptive pill without a prescription
Get a free blood pressure check
You can get a free blood pressure checked at a pharmacy without seeing a GP, if you:
- are aged 40 or over
- live in England
You cannot get a free blood pressure check if you:
- already have high blood pressure
- have had your blood pressure checked by a healthcare professional in the past 6 months
Click here to find a pharmacy that offers free blood pressure checks