COUNCIL chief executive Steven Broomhead has been left 'surprised' after the 'absence of a consultation' over NHS England's plans to cut unnecessary hospital stays for elderly patients.

NHS England has today, Friday, announced plans to recruit and deploy hundreds of pharmacists into care homes to help reduce 'over-medication' and needless time spent in hospital.

Around 180,000 people living in nursing or residential homes will have their prescriptions and medicines reviewed by new pharmacists and pharmacy technicians.

NHS England will roll out the approach by funding the recruitment of 240 pharmacists and technicians.

Reviews will be carried out in co-ordination with GPs and practice-based clinical pharmacists to ensure people are prescribed 'the right medicines, at the right time, in the right way' to improve their health and quality of life.

Simon Stevens, chief executive of NHS England, said: "There's increasing evidence that our parents and their friends – a whole generation of people in their 70s, 80s and 90s – are being over-medicated in care homes, with bad results.

"Let's face it, the policy of 'a pill for every ill' is often causing frail older people more health problems than it's solving.

"So expert pharmacists are now going to offer practical NHS support and medicines reviews in care homes across England."

But council chief executive Mr Broomhead, who chairs Warrington's health and wellbeing board, has highlighted concerns.

He said: "While I welcome any additional resources to help care for the frail and elderly of Warrington, I am surprised that there seems to have been an absence of consultation with those at the sharp end, providing the care.

"Private sector homes and local authorities are responsible for providing this care and yet have not been consulted on this plan in general – or on how it is going to work in practice.

"This scheme would appear to need a significant investment yet we have not been told who is paying for it.

"If NHS England wishes to act to help with the care of the elderly in our communities they should speak to the organisations currently undertaking that role before making wide-ranging decisions such as this."

The roll-out of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians into care homes is part of the NHS England proposal, named Refreshing NHS Plans for 2018-19, which sets out measures to provide joined-up services for patients to ensure they receive care in the 'most appropriate place'.

Sandra Gidley, chair of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's English Board, said: "This significant investment highlights the growing recognition that pharmacists who support care home residents can reduce medicines waste, improve efficiency and provide better health outcomes."