NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service

Jenna Murray talks to Ali Cracknell, Philippa Duggan-Carter and Jeremy Robson from Leeds University Hospital NHS trust in this podcast about a time critical medicines quality improvement project that has been successfully implemented and sustained, it is now part of everyday practice. Discussion includes the background to the project, how the team used what could have been a significant roadblock as catalyst for change and how the team knew that new practices had become business as usual.

Jenna Murray - Senior Specialist Pharmacy Technician Medication Safety (NHS SPS)
Ali Cracknell - Consultant in Acute and Elderly Medicine (Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust)
Phillipa Duggan-Carter - Lead Nurse Parkinson's Disease Specialist (Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust)
Jeremy Robson - Advanced Clinical Pharmacist for Neurology (Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust)

Gary Hodgson, Medicines Advice Pharmacist at SPS, presents a summary of the resources published by SPS between 20th and 26th June.  
To easily find a list of newly published pages go to sps.nhs.uk, select ‘search’, click in the search bar, and press enter.   

Quick links to highlighted resources:    

Prescribing with confidence podcast series
Exploring real-world prescribing through expert insights, practical tools, and lived experiences to support prescribers in developing safe, confident practice.
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/prescribing-with-confidence-podcast-series/

Share your feedback on this podcast series
We would really appreciate your views, whether you’ve listened to one or multiple episodes of our Prescribing with confidence podcast series.
https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=VpftQ_9Bv0yVm0BqQIO3i22A1OMYp8xGqlAGgUanSedUNktDMUdNTlRTNDZaSk5DRUdMSEZaV1g0Mi4u&route=shorturl

SPS Screensavers
A collection of screensavers designed by SPS for healthcare professionals to save and use on workplace computers.
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/screensavers/

Managing fire risk with emollients and other skin products
Emollient residue can increase the risk of fatal burns. This article outlines how fire risk occurs, which patients may be at increased risk, and harm reduction.
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/managing-fire-risk-with-emollients-and-other-skin-products/

Prescribing and administering intravenous paracetamol safely
Guidance on safe prescribing and administration of IV paracetamol, including dosing, infusion, risk mitigation, and monitoring to prevent errors.
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/using-intravenous-paracetamol-preparations-safely-in-paediatrics/

Influenza vaccine written instruction template for adoption
An IM influenza vaccination written instruction template is published annually for adoption by organisations providing flu vaccination to employees.
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/influenza-vaccine-written-instruction-templates-for-adoption/

Minocycline monitoring
New sections have been added, including ‘requirements for treatment lasting longer than six months’, and considerations where minocycline may be ‘less suitable for prescribing’
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/monitorings/minocycline-monitoring/

Next events – forthcoming webinars and conferences           
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/home/events/next-events/          

 Join our WhatsApp channel to stay up to date with our latest news and updates     
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBslvuJpe8aH3n7Zu1i     

Podcast description:         

NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service serves healthcare professionals across the NHS who are involved in all aspects of buying, making and using medicines. Our motto is 'do once and share'.

In this podcast Emma Bryant (Mental Health Lead at NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service) speaks with Dr Rania Ward, Principal Pharmacist for Sleep Medicine, who answers some of the questions posed in the chat during our recent webinar, SMRs in problematic polypharmacy: insomnia focus (14 April 2026).

00.45 - Sleep cycle and shift patterns
03.23 - Cumulative sleep
04.45 - Red flags
10.22 - Treat the underlying cause or start hypnotics
12.34 - Pharmacological options
15.07 - Melatonin
20.11 - Serious mental illness (SMI) and insomnia
22.22 - New medicines for insomnia (daridorexant)
26.46 - Non-pharmacological treatments
31.12 - More information and training

Dr Rania Ward; Principal Pharmacist for Sleep Medicine, Queen Victoria Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Emma Bryant; Mental Health Lead, Medicines Use and Safety, NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service

Useful links

SMRs in problematic polypharmacy: case based discussions
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/smrs-in-problematic-polypharmacy-case-based-discussions/

National Sleep Pharmacy Network
https://nspn.co.uk/

RCGP Learning (Insomnia)
https://elearning.rcgp.org.uk/course/info.php?id=824

PCPharm (Insomnia Learning Programme)
https://courses.learning.rpharms.com/product?catalog=RCP-Clinical-19

Penny Daynes, Associate Regional Pharmacy Procurement Specialist at SPS, presents a summary of the resources published by SPS between 13th and 19th June.  

To easily find a list of newly published pages go to sps.nhs.uk, select ‘search’, click in the search bar, and press enter.   

Quick links to highlighted resources:    

Prescribing with confidence podcast series
Exploring real-world prescribing through expert insights, practical tools, and lived experiences to support prescribers in developing safe, confident practice.
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/prescribing-with-confidence-podcast-series/

Share your feedback on this podcast series
We would really appreciate your views, whether you’ve listened to one or multiple episodes of our Prescribing with confidence podcast series.
https://forms.office.com/pages/responsepage.aspx?id=VpftQ_9Bv0yVm0BqQIO3i22A1OMYp8xGqlAGgUanSedUNktDMUdNTlRTNDZaSk5DRUdMSEZaV1g0Mi4u&route=shorturl

Change management in aseptic services
All changes in pharmacy aseptic service units must be formally controlled, assessed and reviewed to ensure product quality and patient safety.
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/change-management-in-nhs-aseptic-units/

Deviation management in NHS aseptic units
Effective deviation management helps identify, investigate, and resolve unexpected events that could affect product quality, compliance, or patient safety.
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/deviation-management-in-nhs-aseptic-units/

Covert administration of medicines: legal issues
A summary of key legal issues, a pathway of actions and links to national guidance to consider before administering medicines covertly to adults.
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/articles/covert-administration-of-medicines-legal-issues/

Next events – forthcoming webinars and conferences           
https://www.sps.nhs.uk/home/events/next-events/            

Join our WhatsApp channel to stay up to date with our latest news and updates     
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBslvuJpe8aH3n7Zu1i     

Podcast description:         
NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service serves healthcare professionals across the NHS who are involved in all aspects of buying, making and using medicines. Our motto is 'do once and share'.

Rakhi Aggarwal speaks with Karoline Brennan from the SPS Medicines Advice team. Karoline highlights key SPS written resources for prescribers, explains how to effectively search for information on the SPS website, and outlines the SPS clinical enquiry answering service available to primary care professionals.