Community Pharmacy IT Group (CP ITG)
Published on: 9th June 2017 | Updated on: 17th September 2024
The Community Pharmacy IT Group first met in 2017, and progresses its workstream areas during and between its meetings. The group hopes to set out digital priorities and encourage the sector to get more engaged with the many upcoming digital changes. It brings together pharmacy representatives with IT policy makers and system suppliers to discuss such changes.
The joint group has been formed by Community Pharmacy England, NPA, RPS, CCA and AIMp and representatives are sent from each. Pharmacy system suppliers, NHSBSA, NHS Digital, NHSE&I, and NHS Transformation Directorate also participate in the group’s meetings.
Matt Armstrong (CCA representative) was elected to chair the group and David Broome (Community Pharmacy England regional representative) was elected as Vice Chair.
About system supplier attendance: Pharmacy patient medication record (PMR) system suppliers and pharmacy service suppliers attend the meetings. Other pharmacy system suppliers (or prospective suppliers) may also attend and may contact it@cpe.org.uk for details about the meeting and how to join it.
Instructions about invitations may be sent out prior to meetings. Meetings may be held virtually using the Zoom meetings solution, and Community Pharmacy England has a guide to the Zoom which can be used by those attending.
Read more about who is involved within the section below and at CP ITG representatives.
Read more about who is involved at: CP ITG representatives.
CP ITG meetings
CP ITG meetings occur each quarter (Wednesdays 11am-2.30pm) – usually virtually. Meetings may be held virtually using the Zoom meetings solution, and Community Pharmacy England has a guide to the Zoom which can be used by those attending.
Future dates are listed at the IT events page.
Information for new members or presenters
Information is also set out within:
If you will be presenting for CP ITG please note the Information and checklist for presenters document (CP ITG).
Information about CP ITG sister group: Community Pharmacy Digital Group
CP ITG’s sister virtual group, Community Pharmacy Digital Group (CPDG) also has early sight of new developments and technology and its views feed directly into CP ITG. The CPDG comes together virtually as a social networking email group.
Further CPDG members are welcomed and can be as involved as they wish. Try taking part with CPDG by signing up at the CPDG page. The CPDG group discuss matters virtually via email instead of meeting face-to-face. After signing up, you can decide to unsubscribe from the email group at any time.
See also the CP ITG section above about: ‘Membership, joining and attending‘.
Information is set out within the group’s Terms of Reference.
The purposes of the group include:
- developing a shared vision for the optimum use of digital technology in community pharmacy in England;
- providing a forum to discuss new digital technologies which may have a future impact on community pharmacy practice;
- supporting the development of user-led recommendations which can be considered by suppliers;
- providing a credible, respected forum for sector-wide engagement with NHS organisations and other national bodies on the vision, strategy and operational plans for delivering optimum use of digital technology in community pharmacy;
- developing an implementation strategy for delivering optimum use of digital technology in community pharmacy and oversee a joint work-programme to deliver it; and
- providing, through its member organisations, recommendations and advice to community pharmacy and other healthcare organisations.
The Chair, commented on the purpose:
“This group, with its unique cross-sector membership, has an important task ahead of it: to develop a shared vision for the use of digital technology in community pharmacy in England; and to work together to implement changes that will benefit pharmacies, patients and the NHS.”
For additional information on the group’s objectives see:
CP ITG workstream progress is set out at: CP ITG and IT workstream updates.
Click here to complete a 1-minute survey to make a request for CP ITG to explore a topic.
Note: The CP ITG will consider topics based on number of requests and extent of alignment with CP ITG workstreams.
Meeting papers and minutes
Click on the links below to download the agendas and minutes. Minutes from the meetings will be published after they are approved at the following meeting. Sorted from newest to oldest:
Digital priority papers
Several short papers are set out below:
- Views on the next generation of EPS (CP ITG)
- Digital priorities list (two pages) summary (one-page) or infographics.
- View on supplier development
- CPCF grid, infographic and IT – Reproductions of the grid and infographic to support IT relating to the Five-Year Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework.
- Local digital priorities template (prose version / slide version)
CP ITG ShCR papers
Get involved
If you would like to feed into the CP ITG or share your updates about IT and digital issues then please don’t hesitate to contact one of the group’s organisers, Dan Ah-Thion or it@cpe.org.uk or you can also sign-up to join the virtual Community Pharmacy Digital Group which helps inform CP ITG’s work with others. You can be involved as much or as little as you like, and can unsubscribe from that email group at any time.
Return to the Pharmacy IT hub; Policy, the NHS and IT or IT a-z index
For more information on this topic please email it@cpe.org.uk
