Evidence Base Reports

Improving the public's health and reducing health inequalities is a key aim for each of the home countries - against this policy of the UK agenda it is important that we know where community pharmacy can contribute to improving the public's health. The Government's long-term plans to overhaul and modernise the NHS has prompted enormous changes for every health professional and has highlighted the need for them to develop new and more effective ways of working. In this context and recognising the importance of research, PharmacyHealthLink and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain (RPSGB) commissioned a series of evidence based reports - using both published and unpublished literature - to help support recommendations for the future of pharmacy-based health improvement initiatives.

Click on the title of each report for a PDF version.

Report 7: The contribution of community pharmacy to improving the public’s health: Summary report of the literature review 1990-2007. (2009)

This report presents a summary of findings from a review of evidence published in peer-reviewed journals between 1990 and 2007 on the contribution of community pharmacy to improving the public’s health. This document brings together the evidence identified from a series of literature reviews covering the periods 1990-2001, 2001-2004 and 2004-2007. This summary focuses on evidence of effectiveness, quality, costs/cost-effectiveness and skill mix of potential relevance and application to community pharmacy in the UK.

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Report 6: The contribution of community pharmacy to improving the public's health : Literature Review Update 2004-7. A management summary of evidence published in peer-reviewed journals over the past 3 years. (2008)

The contribution of community pharmacy to Improving the public's health : Literature Review Update 2004-7 is a summary of findings from evidence published in peer-reviewed journals over the past 3 years - and adds to the evidence already identified in our previous reviews covering the period from 1990-2004. This management summary focuses on evidence of effectiveness, quality, cost effectiveness and skill mix and also relates to pharmacists' attitudes and practice.
Report 5: The contribution of pharmacy to improving the public’s health: Evidence from the peer-reviewed literature 2001 - 2004. (2005)

An update of a previous review of published literature was commissioned to cover the period March 2001 - June 2004 to inform the development of the pharmacy public health strategy for England. The search strategy used for the previous evidence base review was utilised for this review with search dates February 1st 2001 to June 30th 2004. The quality criteria and data extraction frameworks used were those developed for the previous review.

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Report 4: The contribution of community pharmacy to improving the public's health - Local examples of service provision 1998-2002 (2005)

This report sets out the results of a survey (1998-2002) and current health development projects involving community pharmacy. It provides an overview of community pharmacy activity throughout the UK and, where appropriate, offers international examples. The report concludes with an analysis of lessons to be learned about good practice from the case studies and the various projects identified through the survey.
Evidence Report Update: 2004 (2005)

Evidence from the peer-reviewed literature.
Report 3: The contribution of community pharmacy to improving the public's health: An overview of evidence from the peer reviewed and non-peer reviewed literature and recommendations for action. (2005)

This report places the findings from Reports 1 and 2 in the context of overarching national strategies and targets, and offers recommendations for future action.
Report 2: The contribution of community pharmacy to improving the public's health: Evidence from the non peer-reviewed literature 1990-2002 (Launched March 2003, UK Public Health Association's Annual Conference)

This report looks at non-peer reviewed research in the UK and reveals interesting new evidence about the public health role of community pharmacists from the perspectives of the primary healthcare team and the general public. In particular the evidence shows that community pharmacists can make a difference to the health of their communities by providing effective interventions on sensitive health issues such as the supply of emergency hormonal contraception, head lice management and drug misuse services. The report also confirmed that the public's actual experiences when using pharmacies were more positive than their prior expectations.
Report 1: The contribution of community pharmacy to improving the public's health: Evidence from the peer-reviewed literature 1990-2001 (1st edn. 2001, 2nd edn. 2003)

This report looks at existing research data on extending the role of pharmacists in health improvement, examining the opportunities for pharmacists to contribute to health improvement and their current contributions in key areas such as smoking cessation, emergency contraception and lipid management. While certain services are well-researched and well-received and their widespread implementation is recommended, other services show promise but require more evaluation to assess their effectiveness and suitability.