TY - JOUR T1 - Medicines optimisation in primary care: can community pharmacies deliver? JF - British Journal of General Practice JO - Br J Gen Pract SP - 398 LP - 399 DO - 10.3399/bjgp12X653444 VL - 62 IS - 601 AU - Anna De Simoni AU - Ricky Mullis AU - Wendy Clyne AU - Alison Blenkinsopp Y1 - 2012/08/01 UR - http://bjgp.org/content/62/601/398.abstract N2 - One pound in every eight of NHS spending is on medicines, yet it is generally agreed that up to half of all the medicines prescribed are not used as the prescriber intended.1 The problem of sub-optimal use of medicines in chronic diseases has been recognised for many years, but only recently has ‘medicines optimisation’ been on the agenda of policy makers. Medicines optimisation refers to the process of making the use of medication by patients as safe, effective, and efficient as possible. A key part of the government’s strategy towards achieving this has been to extend the role of community pharmacies, and to make better use of pharmacists’ specific medicines-related skills and knowledge.This strategy for medicines optimisation began with the 2005 Medicines Use Review (MUR) service, and received another fillip in October last year with the launch of the New Medicines Service (NMS) in England.2 Whereas the focus of the MUR was on improving medicines use by patients already taking multiple medicines for a period of time, the NMS aims to provide early support to patients who are newly prescribed a medicine for a long-term condition. Similar services have been introduced in Scotland and Wales. Given the investment of scarce NHS resources (up to £55 million pounds per annum until 2013 in England for the NMS) what are the chances of success? Here we explore the potential, the evidence, and the challenges of the NMS service.The NMS seeks to improve medicines use in people with long-term conditions who are newly prescribed … ER -