The New medicine service (NMS) is an advanced service, which offers support to people with a long-term condition who have been newly prescribed a medicine. It focuses on specific conditions. It began in October 2011, and in September 2021, the range of conditions and therapeutic areas eligible for the NMS was significantly expanded. The conditions and therapeutic areas now eligible for the service are:
| Asthma and COPD | Diabetes (Type 2) | Hypertension | Hypercholesterolaemia |
|---|---|---|---|
| Osteoporosis | Gout | Glaucoma | Epilepsy |
| Parkinson’s disease | Urinary incontinence/retention | Heart failure | Acute coronary syndromes |
| Stroke and transient ischaemic attack | Coronary heart disease | Atrial fibrillation | Long term risks of venous thromboembolism/embolism |
For each condition and therapeutic area, a list of medicines has been published (please see the Drug Tariff and NHS BSA website). Community Pharmacy England offers a New Medicine Service hub page with further supporting information.
This page has been developed to support you to become ready to provide the NMS or, if you are already providing the NMS, to support you to familiarise yourself with the expanded service. We start by offering background information and learning, then, we signpost to key clinical learning on each of the above topics. Finally, we link to consultation skills and personalised care resources, to help you ensure that your consultations are as effective as they can be.
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The Advanced Service Specification – NHS New Medicines Service provides background information, the aims and intended outcomes of the service and the details around service provision. It was updated alongside the changes to the service in September 2021 and we recommend that you familiarise yourself with it before delivering the service.
Advanced Service Specification – NHS New Medicines ServiceBefore you can provide the NMS, you need to complete the NMS self-assessment of readiness framework which assures you, your employer and the NHS, that you have reflected upon the skills and knowledge necessary to provide the NMS, and that you can demonstrate them.
NMS – self-assessment of readiness frameworkIf you are new to the provision of the NMS and would like some background information, or wish to refresh your knowledge, you can access the New medicine service e-learning programme. This programme aims to give you an understanding of how the NMS should be delivered in a person-centred, effective way as part of your day-to-day practice.
We recognise that in addition to learning about the background to the NMS, you may be looking to refresh your knowledge of the conditions and therapeutic areas eligible for the service.
At CPPE, we have a series of gateway pages linked to the clinical conditions. On each page, we have collected key learning materials you can use to update your knowledge. We link to the latest CPPE programmes on each clinical topic, and signpost to external resources to help you keep up to date.
The antiplatelet/anticoagulant therapy group that was included in the NMS originally is now included in the above list by reference to the underlying condition/reason for prescribing. If you would like to refresh your knowledge of anticoagulation then we offer the following additional gateway page:
AnticoagulationOnce you have an up-to-date understanding of the NMS, and feel confident on each of the clinical topic areas, you may wish to think about your consultation skills and how you provide personalised care.
At CPPE, we offer consultation skills learning to help you ensure that both you and the people that you consult with are getting the most from your consultations. As with clinical topics above, we run a learning gateway that links to key resources to support you.
Consultation skills: face-to-face and remoteIn addition to considering your consultation skills, you may want to consider how you provide personalised care, specifically shared decision making. Personalised care and shared decision making are core elements of the NHS Long Term Plan. Shared decision making is linked to improved outcomes for patients and puts people at the centre of their own care, making them experts in their own healthcare decisions. There are several shared decision making programmes available. They are of varying lengths and can all be used to support your learning in this area.
The CPPE Shared decision making programme consists of a six unit, self-directed e-course and two full day online workshops. Completion time is approximately 30 hours over six to nine weeks. It is open to all NHS pharmacy professionals working in a patient-facing role in England. The aim of this course is to create a culture shift in practice, by supporting pharmacists to embed shared decision making, as part of personalised care.
CPPE Shared decision making programmeNational Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) offer Shared decision making guidance and a supportive learning package developed with Keele University. The NICE/Keele University Shared decision making learning package consists of six online modules and takes approximately four hours to complete.
NICE learning packageThe Personalised Care Institute offers a 30-minute online Shared decision making e-learning programme. This e-learning aligns to the Personalised Care Institute curriculum, and covers aspects of the core capabilities to communicate and build relationships, and to engage, enable and support people.
Personalised Care Institute Shared decision making e-learning