Advice and treatment
Pharmacists can provide advice on a wide range of health conditions and recommend medicines to help manage them.
For certain conditions, they may also be able to offer treatment and supply some prescription medicines directly, without the need to see a GP. This service is known as Pharmacy First.
Conditions they can treat as part of Pharmacy First are:
- earache (aged 1 to 17 years)
- impetigo (aged 1 year and over)- a contagious skin infection
- infected insect bites (aged 1 year and over)
- shingles (aged 18 years and over)- infection that causes a painful rash
- sinusitis (aged 12 years and over)- infection of the sinuses (behind the forehead, cheeks and nose)
- sore throat (aged 5 years and over)
- urinary tract infections or UTIs (women aged 16 to 64 years)
The pharmacist will offer you advice, provide treatment, or refer you to a GP or another healthcare professional if necessary.
Pharmacies will update your GP health record accordingly.
If you are not within the specified age ranges, the pharmacist can still give you advice; however, you may need to see a GP for treatment.
Please note that on weekends, online self-referrals may take longer to process as the practice is closed and your assessment will not be reviewed until we reopen. For a quicker response, please visit your local pharmacy in person.
Find a Pharmacy
Getting the contraceptive pill without a prescription
You may be able to get the contraceptive pill from a pharmacy if you need to:
• start the contraceptive pill for the first time
• take the contraceptive pill again after a break from using it
If you already have a prescription for the contraceptive pill, you can use the prescription as usual. Or you can get the pill from a pharmacy without a prescription if you prefer.
Get a free blood pressure check
You can get a free blood pressure checked at a pharmacy without seeing a GP, if you:
- are aged 40 or over
- live in England
You cannot get a free blood pressure check if you:
- already have high blood pressure
- have had your blood pressure checked by a healthcare professional in the past 6 months
Some pharmacies offer a free blood pressure check:
https://www.nhs.uk/nhs-services/pharmacies/find-a-pharmacy-that-offers-free-blood-pressure-checks/
If you think you need medical help right now, you can call NHS 111 or access NHS 111 services online who can tell you what to do next.