NHS priorities

Whether it’s to prepare for the next Pharmacy Quality Scheme deadline, or to increase your confidence in helping people with a learning disability, this section provides topic-specific pages that link to current NHS priorities. This section will support you in keeping your knowledge and skills up to date in order to provide high-quality pharmacy services and be service-ready.

Clinical pharmacy

Our clinical portfolio is expanding on a frequent basis, helping you to advance your knowledge and skills and deliver medicines optimisation in practice for all sectors of pharmacy. From two new focal points a year to our small group learning for hospital pharmacists – Optimise – this section focuses on clinical pharmacy, diseases and therapeutics.

Public health

The public health agenda is embedded in pharmacy, yet topics such as emergency contraception or stop smoking support are as prevalent as ever. As well as our public health workshops, use this section to access a wide range of resources to assure and maintain your competence, all underpinned by the Declaration of Competence system.

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distance learning

Consultation skills for pharmacy practice: taking a person-centred approach


  • Released: 03/2014
  • Reviewed: 04/2024
  • Study time: 10h:0m

This is a downloadable programme that enables you to describe the key communication and consultation skills and techniques required for person-centred care. You will learn how to explore a person’s beliefs, ideas, concerns and expectations and tailor the consultation to help them get the best from their medicines and to make informed health and lifestyle choices. The programme also develops your skills in engaging the person in shared decision making and enabling them to be a true partner in the consultation.

Learning outcomes

On completion of all aspects of this learning programme you should be able to:

  • explain the concept of person-centred care
  • describe the key communication and consultation skills and techniques required to conduct patient-centred care
  • apply methods to assess your own practice and identify areas of improvement
  • support patients, by using a patient-centred approach, to help them get the best from their medicines and/or in making healthy lifestyle choices
  • further develop your practice by exploring tools and techniques, such as health coaching.

How to use this programme

On your computer: You can open this programme as a PDF in your web browser. We recommend that you download and save it to your computer and view it through Adobe Reader.

On your tablet device: If you would like to view this programme on your tablet device you can download the PDF and open it within a free PDF reader app. We have tested this type of programme in a few apps and found that it works in the Adobe Reader app on Android and Apple devices and the PDF Reader app on Apple devices.

Learning intended for

  • Pharmacists
  • Pharmacy technicians
  • Trainee pharmacists
  • CPPE registrants