Rapid review of pharmacy services changed in response to Covid-19 in Northern Ireland
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This rapid review captures the changes to pharmacy services that were implemented in the Health and Social Care (HSC) service in Northern Ireland during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, between March and May 2020. It describes the wide range of interventions by pharmacy teams that were necessary to ensure that patients and the public had access to medicines and pharmaceutical care throughout the emergency.
Since the publication of the 2020 report, pharmacy in Northern Ireland has continued to play an integral role in the Covid-19 pandemic response in subsequent waves, including the rollout of Covid-19 vaccination and novel therapeutic agents. A follow-up review was carried out which aimed to identify lessons learned from pharmacy interventions made after the first wave of the pandemic, and to identify good working practices, challenges encountered and lessons learned in relation to the role of pharmacy teams in the rollout of Covid-19 vaccination and therapeutic agents.