BOOTS will offer £15 GP-style health appointments in a bid to take pressure off the NHS this winter
BOOTS is to offer £15 GP-style health appointments in a bid to take pressure off the NHS this winter.
The high street giant is branching out to provide face-to-face consultations for minor ailments.
Pharmacists are being given training that allows them to diagnose conditions and even write prescriptions.
It comes after the NHS revealed there were a million fewer in-person GP appointments last month.
Appointments start at £15, which includes the prescription costs. As well as face-to-face appointments in-store, Boots is also offering a pay-as-you-go service with .
Boots chief executive Seb James, right, told The Sun: “The NHS is under a lot of pressure with the pandemic, and that will only get worse when the winter wave hits
“We have this incredible resource - highly-trained pharmacists in hundreds of stores around the country - which isn’t being used to its full potential.
“Rather than wait two weeks to see a GP, people can get immediate diagnosis, treatment and medication for the price of a Nando’s.”
There are 2,336 Boots stores across the UK, employing 6,600 registered pharmacists.
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Those who train as pharmacist independent prescribers can write prescriptions as well as dispense them.
In an exclusive interview with The Sun, Mr James also revealed Boris Johnson called him at the start of the pandemic to ask if Boots could help the NHS with testing.
He said: “I assured him we would not seek to make a profit out of Covid.
This policy enabled us to move quickly and help the nation. Hopefully, this new venture will continue that trend.”
Dr Raghib Ali, a consultant in acute medicine at Oxford University Hospitals Trust, said doctors are in favour of pharmacists seeing patients.
He said: “The simple fact is, there aren’t enough GPs to meet demand.
"Patients with simple conditions often wait two weeks for an appointment.
“Pharmacists are extremely capable. They train for only one year less than doctors, and usually know more about medications.
“It makes perfect sense to use their skills to take some pressure off the hard-pressed NHS.”
Dr Emeka Okorocha, an NHS surgeon and star of the BBC’s Junior Doctors, added: “Having worked in a GP surgery and hospitals, I know this will really help to relieve some of the pressure from the NHS and help patients who need quick access to advice and prescription-only medicine.”
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Private GP appointments through Bupa cost £70 for 15 minutes, plus the cost of any prescription.
The Boots service starts at £15 including prescriptions.
