An additional 72,558 patients in Gloucestershire will soon be able to benefit from expert clinical pharmacy advice when they visit their GP surgery thanks to the expansion of a national scheme.

The clinical pharmacy scheme, which has been running in six Gloucestershire practices since March 2016, sees independent prescribing clinical pharmacists work as part of the general practice team.

They provide expertise on day-to-day medicine issues and hold consultations with patients, helping them to manage long-term conditions. This often gives patients access to clinical advice more quickly and allows GPs to spend time with patients who have more complex needs.

As well as seeing patients, pharmacists are able to carry out comprehensive medication reviews for patients to make sure the medication they need is appropriate and up to date.

The scheme is now being extended within other practices across the county.