Calling Pharmacy England Contractors: Claim Your COVID-19 Costs Now!

With just five days to go, Alliance Healthcare is urging pharmacy contractors in England to claim for all extra COVID-19 costs they have incurred during the pandemic. The deadline is 23:59 on Sunday 15th August.

Ashley Kilgas, Sales Director at Alliance Healthcare said: “Alliance Healthcare urges all pharmacy contractors to, as a matter of urgency, ensure they apply to claim back extra COVID-19 costs they incurred during the pandemic. It is imperative all contractors carry out this exercise and submit their claim before the deadline. There is a range of support and resources on the PSNC website to aid the claims made, please visit: https://psnc.org.uk/the-healthcare-landscape/covid19/funding-during-the-pandemic/ 

Ian Barnes, Head of Field Operations at Alphega Pharmacy UK said: “The Alphega Pharmacy team has over the last few weeks been visiting and calling its members to offer support in the COVID-19 extra costs claiming process. What is apparent to our teams is that some pharmacies have not yet started looking at their claim submissions and in some cases some members are struggling to ascertain what their costs are. The Alphega Pharmacy Business Mentor team are out in the field to support members in this area – and my dedicated field team of 10 people are fully committed to help. All Alphega Pharmacy members that need any support in this subject so please contact: membersupport@alphega-pharmacy.co.uk

We are paperless! Customer monthly statements available via myahportal

As part of our on-going commitment to reduce our impact on the environment as well as helping you self-serve, this is our final reminder to inform customers that Monthly Statements are available to access on myahportal.co.uk and we will no longer send customersprinted copies from Thursday 5 August (July statement).

Benefits to online statements:

1. Instant access to documents – no need to wait for the statement to arrive by post and you can also get access to a rolling 12 months’ of statements, which can be downloaded and stored on your local device
2. Quick, safe and secure – peace of mind that statements will only be accessible by authorised persons
3. Environmental impact – by reducing the need to print an average of four pages of paper per customer, we’ll save approximately 720,000 sheets of paper – that’s more than 50 trees a year, based on current statistics
4. Fuel Savings - help us and the Royal Mail reduce fuel consumption by removing approximately 180,000 statement delivered per year, thus reducing our carbon footprint - a major contributor to global climate change

The benefits don’t stop there! The portal provides you easy access to:

• Ordering products with immediate access to AH Direct
• Ordering all your surgical appliances fromNWOS
• Reporting a missing product with instant access to E-Missings
• Creating a returns note with access to ‘Returns’
• View and access statements, invoices and credit notes through Your Docs (where applicable)

Here to Help

We would now like to encourage all customers to view their monthly statements on myahportal.co.uk and would be happy to support with any queries. If you experience any difficulties and require support please contact the Customer Portal Team on 0330 100 0448 – option 8 or email CustomerPortal@alliance-healthcare.co.uk with ‘Online Monthly Statements’ in the title of your email.

Thank you in advance for your support and co-operation with our move to online monthly statements.

COVID absence and driver shortages continue across the country and, as a business, we are working hard to mitigate the situation.

COVID absence

COVID absence across the network continues to affect service centres and drivers. However, these numbers are decreasing and now that our critical teams are exempt from Test and Trace isolations, the situation continues to improve.

Driver shortages

Our recruitment drive is progressing well and we are seeing good numbers of strong applicants and new drivers into the business. This means we have a lot of new members to train and it can take time for new drivers to learn our processes and routes. If you happen to meet one of our new colleagues please take the time to say ‘hello’ and make their on-boarding as smooth as possible.

As well as new drivers we have also taken the opportunity to move some of our experienced drivers around the country to help out at hot spots where we have seen service disruption recently. We are grateful to these team members for helping out in this way, travelling across the country and agreeing to leave their homes and stay in hotels to help out with the current situation.

Our main aim is to provide a stable service to you, our customers and, in turn, patients across the UK. This is at the heart of everything we do, and we appreciate your continued dedication.

We will continue to keep you updated on the situation as it evolves.

Alliance Healthcare announces a partnership with Healthera, a leading provider of pharmacy patient apps, to drive forward the digital agenda within community pharmacy.

Alliance Healthcare Partners With Healthera To Bring Digital Revolution To Community Pharmacy

Today, as part of its commitment to drive forward the digital agenda within community pharmacy, we are pleased to announce a partnership with Healthera, a leading provider of pharmacy patient apps.  The ‘Healthera app’ offers local pharmacists the opportunity to gain a competitive edge *.

The OTC drug market is worth £2.6billion#, with dispensed prescriptions items in England worth £9.28billion ##, and with only a small proportion of the market currently believed to be digital, there is an opportunity for all local pharmacies to move into this space.  By subscribing to the Healthera App local pharmacists will be able to benefit from the increasing trend of shopping going digital, as well as address the competitive pressure from online pharmacies.

Over 1,500 pharmacies currently use the Healthera platform to offer their patients a streamlined way of ordering prescriptions, buying over the counter medicines, and booking same-day delivery through the app. 

As part of the partnership, we are actively marketing the Healthera platform to independent pharmacies nationwide that are looking for a solution to secure their patient base and help grow their revenue. Working collaboratively and sharing expertise, the partnership will, in time, offer additional functionality, to maximise the value of the pharmacy’s inventory and clinical expertise, and to continue to help improve pharmacy revenue and efficiency.

Ashley Kilgas, Sales Director at Alliance Healthcare commented, “If the past year has shown anything, it’s the importance of utilising technology to keep connected to each other. The dedication shown by our customers during the pandemic made one thing abundantly clear, they put the care for their patients first.

Our partnership with Healthera is a fantastic step towards making available a suite of digital solutions designed to help pharmacy stay connected with patients and streamline dispensary processes empowering dispensary teams to focus on patients rather than admin.  The Healthera app is built from the ground up to create an intuitive user experience putting interactions with community pharmacy literally in the palm of the patient’s hand.

Initially this will offer fantastic benefits for both patient and pharmacy team, but moving forward we aim to work with Healthera to evolve what the app can offer opening up new revenue opportunities for our customers.”

 Healthera is supporting this partnership by providing in store point of sale for any customers who choose to sign up to the service. This point of sale material will help patients access the app and inform them of some of its benefits.

Quintus Liu, CEO at Healthera commented, “We are pleased to work with the innovative team at Alliance Healthcare that shares our drive to improve the revenue growth of pharmacies and our vision towards providing the one-stop-shop for healthcare eCommerce. Our teams are ready to bring several hundred more pharmacies on-board over the next few months, and announce new offerings right around the corner.”

# Source: Statista, 2020, retail sales £

## Source: NHSBSA, Prescription Cost Analysis England 2020-21

* Alliance Healthcare provides marketing services to Healthera Ltd. If you subscribe for the Healthera app you will contract directly with Healthera Ltd and a monthly subscription fee and terms and conditions will apply. Subscription fees may vary.

Alliance Healthcare Service Centre Opens COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic

Thanks to a joint initiative between Wigan Council and the NHS Greater Manchester Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), some of our team members based at Leigh Service Centre received their first COVID-19 vaccination whilst at work.

Four health professionals attended the one day clinic to administer the Pfizer vaccine to 30 team members, who were delighted that they were able to receive their first jab and that it was available to them at their place of work. 

Fran Gray, Warehouse Operations Manager, who led the activity and ensured the smooth running on the day said: “This has been hugely beneficial for our team members that do not have their own transportation, and they have been supported by people they know.”

Commenting on the vaccine clinic Zak Patel, Leigh Service Centre Manager, said: “It’s been fantastic that we have been able to offer the vaccination to some of our team through this one day event.

“Earlier in the year we worked with the council to offer COVID-19 testing to our team and, like the vaccine, it was hugely appreciated.

“We have a good relationship with the local council and we’re happy to work with them on initiatives such as this. I’m also a member of the Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce which has helped to strengthen our relationships with businesses in the area and Wigan Council.”

Following the success of the vaccine clinic, the council is now looking to roll out the Leigh model to other businesses in the area.

Alliance Healthcare Team Member Along with Owner of Peel Green Pharmacy Recognised with the Mayor of Preston's Coronavirus Community Hero Award

We are delighted that Zak Patel, our Leigh Service Centre Manager, and Nasim Patel, owner of Peel Green Pharmacy, have received this special award, along with associates, for establishing Fulwood Foodbank, to support Preston residents in need through the pandemic.

On a weekly basis the group delivered food parcels to families that had been referred to them by Preston City Council, schools and colleges, and local charities.  Supermarkets in the area donated essential food items, as well as nappies and formula, while other local businesses and residents made generous financial contributions – some weeks it was in excess of £7,000!

At the height of the pandemic, they were supporting 2,000 families with three meals a day, seven days a week – that’s a staggering 42,000 meals a week!

Commenting on the award, Managing Director Julian Mount says: “It is fantastic recognition that Zak Patel, our Leigh Service Centre Manager, has been formally recognised by the Mayor of Preston for his local community support work in the height of the pandemic.  Zak is a true example to us all in selflessly putting his community first.  I want to thank Zak for being such a great example to us all.”

Zak Patel says: “I’m proud of how we have been able to help our community and it’s an honour to be recognised. The pandemic has quashed the myth that food banks are just for those sleeping rough as people with homes and jobs have been reliant on them through COVID. It’s heartening to see what can be achieved when we work together.”

Nasim Patel, Peel Green Pharmacy, says: “As a pharmacist I could see that patients were experiencing hardship and struggling before the pandemic. I knew that COVID would amplify the situation and wanted to be able to support the most vulnerable in our community.”

Alliance Healthcare is proud of the vital role its team members play to support the NHS, independent pharmacy and the communities it serves.

Alphega Pharmacy proudly champions TEAMtime for its members with Pharmacist Support

Alphega Pharmacy continues its commitment to help the wellbeing of its pharmacy members across the UK, as proud sponsors of TEAMtime with Pharmacist Support – running from Monday 5 July to Friday 9 July inclusive.

Following on from the successful partnership with Pharmacist Support in 2020, on the #ACTnow wellbeing campaign, Alphega Pharmacy is teaming up with Pharmacist Support once again to run a new campaign dedicated for its members. The campaign, appropriately called – TEAMtime, will encourage Alphega Pharmacy members to spend time with their team, putting their team members wellbeing first and having a well-earned break.

“We recognise that this has been an especially challenging 18 months for our pharmacy members, and here at Alphega Pharmacy we wanted to do something to help” commented Raj Nutan, Head of Alphega Pharmacy UK.

“Pharmacy teams spend much of their day focusing on others and can often find it difficult to spend the time to focus on themselves. But this is so important. During TEAMtime we want to help our members prioritise themselves and their teams. By working with Pharmacist Support and encouraging our members to make time for TEAMtime, we hope it will kick start an Alphega Pharmacy team wellbeing routine”

Across the week, newly trained Alphega „Wellbeing Champions‟ and charity ambassadors will be visiting members and encouraging them to participate in a number of activities. The campaign is focusing on four key areas that will kick start the campaign week, these include:

- TEAMtime Tea Break - Set aside some time at the beginning or end of the day with a cup of tea and biscuit, to just connect with your team and chat!

-TEAMtime Positivity Board - Create a board with post-it notes, to share the small positiveinteractions you have with colleagues and patients, to help you celebrate and appreciate thesmaller things each day

-TEAMtime Active Challenge – Being active is good for your lungs, heart, and head, so challengeyourself and your team to get out and about during lunch breaks or even before or after work.

-TEAMtime Mindfulness – Download a mindfulness app (e.g. Calm or Headspace) to help supportyou to manage day-to-day stresses and strains or simply complete a daily crossword or sudokuduring your lunch break to give your mind a break.

Raj also highlighted what mental health support Alphega Pharmacy are providing to its colleagues: ”As a business, we believe in not only supporting our members mental health but also supporting each other. We have committed to providing metal health first aider training to our Alphega Pharmacy Business Mentor team by the end of the year, with over 50% of the team already having completed the training so far.”

Danielle Hunt, Chief Executive of Pharmacist Support said: “We‟re absolutely delighted to be working with Alphega Pharmacy once again. We have seen through our research over the past couple of years, increasingly high levels of stress and burnout across the profession. We‟re keen to work with organisations across the sector to address these issues and as an independent charity, feel we are well placed to provide this support. Through our partnership with Alphega Pharmacy, we want to help pharmacy teams establish simple routines that improve mental wellbeing for individuals and organisations. We want to showcase how setting aside a small amount of time every day for wellbeing can improve mood, relationships and productivity.”

To find out more about how Alphega Pharmacy can help independent pharmacy businesses, please call: 0203 044 8969 or email: membersupport@alphega-pharmacy.co.uk

Pharmacy Recognised for COVID-19 Efforts as Alliance Healthcare Calls for Continued Expansion of Community Pharmacy Following HM Government Funding Announcement

29 June 2021

Pharmacies across England will be able to claim for COVID-19 costs in line with the recent announcement by PSNC with the HM Government funding. Alliance Healthcare and Alphega Pharmacy is pleased that community pharmacy is now recognised for its instrumental role in the fight against COVID-19 and the success of the COVID-19 vaccination success.

Speaking on the decision, Julian Mount, Managing Director, Alliance Healthcare said: “Since the start of the pandemic, pharmacy customers and patients have recognised the dedication and commitment of pharmacy teams, as the frontline for the NHS for over 15 months. It is great news that now the Department for Health and Social Care is seeing this value too, and we appreciate the hard work from the PSNC and government to support community pharmacy, and we hope to see it go even further.

“In addition to this important step, we must continue to stay focused on recognising the essential role community pharmacists have in improving the health of patients across the UK and create a reimbursement structure that reflects their positive impact.

“The next stage is how we look at the further integration of community pharmacy in England into the primary healthcare team – with autumn on the horizon, winter aliments, flu vaccinations and COVID-19 boosters – we need to ensure the treasury recognise the contribution of pharmacy. Then longer term pharmacy has a key role in helping address backlogs in health, mental health and long-term conditions – and this must be addressed and not forgotten by the relevant stakeholders.”

Raj Nutan, Head of Alphega Pharmacy UK comments: “Notwithstanding the issues surrounding the advance payments, overall, we recognise the work PSNC has done in getting a decision and welcome at long last there is a recognition by the government of the costs pharmacies have had during this difficult COVID-19 period – with community pharmacy going above and beyond, as always, for the UK patients.

The Alphega Pharmacy team will be monitoring and awaiting the detailed guidance from the Drug Tariff with further input from PSNC. In the meantime, we stand ready to support all of our pharmacists any way we can to ensure all Alphega Pharmacy members can appropriately, accurately and effectively claim their costs within a timely window.”

Alloga UK and Alliance Healthcare UK are Integral to the Delivery of COVID-19 Vaccinations

Alloga UK and Alliance Healthcare UK are proud to announce that they have played an instrumental role in supporting the NHS with the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines across England. To date, Alloga UK - with the support from colleagues across Alliance Healthcare – has delivered 24.6 million doses of COVID-19 vaccine. The teams have delivered vaccines to approximately 1,490 sites of care, including hospitals, major vaccination centres, care homes and prisons since December 2020, with deliveries taking place up to seven days a week.

Under the leadership of Chris Williams, Managing Director, Alloga UK, a dedicated team ensured that all necessary processes and preparations were accommodated to distribute vaccines to approximately 50% of England. This involved an area of the Alloga facility being cordoned off to keep the operation classified. The site was also visited numerous times by Government appointed security agencies to ensure safety and security of the vaccines’ storage. 

Julian Mount, Managing Director, Alliance Healthcare UK said: “I am so proud that our business and our colleagues are playing such a key part in the lifesaving effort of COVID-19 vaccine distribution. Team members from multiple departments across the business, have all come together to support this national effort. I want to personally thank each and every one who has been involved. It is a fantastic joint endeavour, and it is just one more example of how Alliance Healthcare and Alloga are working together to support the NHS and patients across the UK.”

Chris Williams comments: “Alloga UK is delighted to be playing a key part in the distribution of COVID-19 vaccines across England. Our unrivalled experience in vaccine distribution has informed our approach and allowed us to work at pace with NHSE in designing and implementing this very complex supply chain within such a short period of time. This implementation has been far from easy, but our professional teams coupled with a can-do mentality has allowed us to overcome many logistics challenges and implement an excellent solution. The teams across NHSE, Alloga UK and Alliance Healthcare UK should be justifiably proud of their collective achievement.”

* As at 21 June, 2021. 

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Mike Smith, Alliance Healthcare UK announces retirement

Mike Smith, non-executive advisor, Alliance Healthcare UK has announced his retirement after 30 years with the company. In announcing his retirement to team members on Tuesday 22 June, Mike said: “The time has come for me to retire and it has been a privilege to meet and work with truly incredible people at Alliance Healthcare. I have long been an avid ambassador for community pharmacy and our industry's remarkable dedication in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic has made me very proud. To my friends and peers I wish you all a very healthy and happy future.”