Prescriptions for Pressure: The Growth of Pharmacy Deserts

COMMUNITY PHARMACIES IN ENGLAND:

  • 1,274 Pharmacies closed in the last three years
  • 11,026 Total number of pharmacies*
  • 1.04 billion Total number of prescriptions
  • 90,522 Average prescriptions per pharmacy per year (248 per day)

Source: Company Chemists’ Association & Statista and *brand new data from the NHS and BBC

WHICH AREAS ARE AT RISK OF BECOMING ‘PHARMACY DESERTS’?

A ‘Pharmacy desert’ refers to a growing number of people in an urban area trying to access a diminishing pool of pharmacies.

  • West Midlands
  • North West
  • South East
  • London (Metropolitan)

Source: Company Chemists’ Association & Statista

TOP 4 ‘PHARMACY DESERTS’:

South East

  • 9,294,023 Total population (Varbes)
  • 1,580 Total pharmacies (Statista)
  • 5,882 People per pharmacy

London (Metropolitan)

  • 9,648,000 Total population (MacroTrends)
  • 1,857 Total pharmacies (Statista)
  • 5,195 People per pharmacy

West Midlands

  • 5,954,240 Total population (Varbes)
  • 1,289 Total pharmacies (Statista)
  • 4,619 People per pharmacy

North West

  • 7,422,295 Total population (Varbes)
  • 1,735 Total pharmacies (Statista)
  • 4,227 People per pharmacy

Total number of community pharmacies operating in England:

2019-2020:

11,826

2020-2021:

11,636

2021-2022:

11,522

Source: Statista

Total number of prescriptions dispensed across community pharmacies in England (in billions):

2019-2020:

1,035

2020-2021:

1,016

2021-2022:

1,043

Source: Statista

A pharmacist dispenses prescriptions faster than it takes to serve a quarter pounder at McDonald's.

2 mins 6 secs = av. time it takes for a pharmacist to dispense a prescription

2 mins 40 secs = av. time it takes to serve a quarter pounder

Source: Statista & McDonald’s

Total number of dispensed prescriptions, divided by total number of pharmacies, divided by the 40 hours a week, divided by 5 days. This gives the daily dispensing figure which you divide by 7.5 (hours) to reveal the hourly dispensing rate.

MOST PRESCRIBED DRUGS IN ENGLAND

1.043 billion prescription items were dispensed in 2021/2022. This was 28.7 million items (2.58%) more than the previous year. Here are the top 3 most prescribed drugs:

#1

Atorvastatin:
53.4m items
(to lower cholestrol)

#2

Omeprazole:
35.1m items
(to treat indigestion & heartburn)

#3

Levothyroxine sodium:
33.2m items
(to treat hypothyroidism)

Source: NHS Prescription Cost Analysis (PCA) (England 2021/2022)

DELIVERIES MADE BY NUMARK IN 2022

Total prescription deliveries made: 25,000+

“There’s no denying that the pharmacy sector is facing significant challenges, but also that demand for pharmacy services is ever increasing.  

“Delivery services can offer pharmacies the opportunity to branch out to those customers who may fall into one of the ‘pharmacy deserts’. They have the potential to relieve some of the pressures from pharmacists with structured delivery routines for regular repeat prescription patients.”

Relieving Delivery Pressures

Gophr can help with that.

We’re one of the UK’s leading medical delivery networks, helping thousands of pharmacies nationwide with prescription deliveries.

We’re also the preferred supplier for Numark, Kamsons, Lloyds, Jhoots and Rowlands pharmacy networks.

If you’d like to know more about how and where we deliver…

Get in Touch

Links to all sources

Community Pharmacies by region

https://www.statista.com/statistics/973616/community-pharmacies-in-england-by-region/

https://www.england.nhs.uk/midlands/2021/12/22/public-urged-to-make-the-most-of-over-1200-community-pharmacies-in-the-west-midlands-this-christmas-and-new-year/

 

Population

https://www.varbes.com/population/north-west-population

https://www.varbes.com/population/west-midlands-population

https://www.varbes.com/population/south-east-population

https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/22860/london/population

 

Total number of community pharmacies in England:

https://www.statista.com/statistics/418071/community-pharmacies-in-england/

 

Total prescriptions dispensed in England:

https://www.statista.com/statistics/418091/prescription-items-dispensed-in-england/

 

McDonald’s quarter pounder stat:

https://www.mcdonalds.com/gb/en-gb/help/faq/how-long-does-it-take-to-cook-a-burger-on-the-grill.html#:~:text=As%20an%20example%2C%20if%20there,the%20grill%20in%20112%20seconds).

 

Ageing population England & Wales: https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/ageing/articles/voicesofourageingpopulation/livinglongerlives#:~:text=The%20population%20of%20England%20and,the%20previous%20census%20in%202011.

 

England regions:

https://www.ons.gov.uk/methodology/geography/ukgeographies/administrativegeography/england

https://www.ons.gov.uk/methodology/geography/ukgeographies/eurostat

 

Worst affected areas in England:

https://thecca.org.uk/40-of-pharmacy-closures-in-last-seven-years-have-occurred-in-deprived-communities/#:~:text=Research%20by%20the%20Company%20Chemists,most%20deprived%20parts%20of%20England.

 

Most prescribed drugs in England:

https://www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk/statistical-collections/prescription-cost-analysis-england/prescription-cost-analysis-england-202122