Our pharmacist-led polypharmacy review in Birmingham resulted in better patient care and cost improvements within its first year.

Since launch in January, 543 vacancies have been processed using Midlands and Lancashire CSU’s (MLCSU’s) new computerised recruitment system, 'Trac'.  Recruiting managers and MLCSU People Services are delighted that the first quarter’s figures confirm we are 'on Trac'. The system is used for MLCSU's own recruitment needs and also by many of our CCG customers.

Midlands and Lancashire CSU Communications and Engagement service has increased patient and clinical uptake to the Cheshire Care Record through sustained engagement, PR and promotion.

Supporting a busy practice to redesign its medication review process improved medicines use while helping to manage the associated workload.

We created a user-friendly, scalable website for England's first GP super-partnership.

We established a new Area Prescribing Committee (APC) for Birmingham and developed a Joint Forumulary to promote safe, evidence-based and cost-effective prescribing.

Our Children's Continuing Care Team in Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland is the first to get all eligible children and young people requiring home care packages onto a personal health budget.

We have produced a manifesto to support the development of 23 localities across Staffordshire and Stoke-on-Trent.

We designed an innovative, flexible procurement process to support transformation of a discharge pathway.

Our analysis and work to track progress in transforming Dudley’s care model helped the system to identify and focus on areas for improvement, bolstering the case for change and informing development of the clinical model.

We produced a dynamic, interactive, case-study-based annual report for West Midlands Academic Health Science Network.

Our experts have helped to develop the national NHS continuing healthcare digital specification

Background North Staffordshire GP Federation asked us to help solve the problem of locum sessions not being filled (with clinics being cancelled as a result), and high agency fees.

Uptake of Electonic Prescription Services and Electronic Repeat Dispensing was increased during a pilot project we carried out in Halton and St Helens.

Our review of anti-coagulant prescribing improved patient safety and reduced costs.

Face-to-face medication reviews by a pharmacist enabled a GP practice to make optimum use of clinician time, improved the quality and safety of prescribing and patient experience of healthcare and resulted in cost savings.

Our Medicines Management and Public Involvement & Insight teams have been commended by Coventry City Council for developing a Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) to assess pharmacy services in relation to local health needs in Coventry, within a very tight timescale.

We worked with West Lancashire Clinical Commissioning Group on an innovative procurement of a community-based, holistic pain management service where a previous process had failed.

Integrating medicines management and optimisation (MMO) pharmacists with cluster community care teams improved patient care and realised cost improvements.

Integrating data analytics to build a profile of over 65s in Walsall led to improved patient care and significant savings.

We managed the Lancashire and South Cumbria Stroke Service Review as a major collaborative exercise, including from the outset patients, carers and members of the public as well as commissioners, providers from acute and community services, public health, the Stroke Association and community groups.

Our Medicines Safety Assurance Tool (MSAT™) has helped clinical commissioning groups to take appropriate actions around patient safety.

This project to optimise the use of inhaled corticosteroids in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) quickly delivered improvements in patient care as well as cost efficiencies.

Reviewing the medication given to patients in West Cheshire care homes improved patient care and resulted in savings.

Our work to review Patient Group Directions ensured an immunisation programme in the West Midlands continued without interruption.

Introducing patient-led repeat ordering in Wirral empowered patients to directly order their own medicines from their GP practice and resulted in reduced waste and costs.

Redesigning the process of developing policies that define when a specific treatment will be commissioned has delivered efficiencies and improved value for 15 clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) across Lancashire, Merseyside and Warrington.  Patients now get the right treatment, at the right time.

We supported South Sefton CCG and Southport & Formby CCG working with local providers to ensure clinically effective treatments were funded appropriately. With their new electronic Prior Approval Scheme, the CCGs have reported a fall in activity and expenditure of £412,000 (19%).

We procured the ideal solution for GP practices across Worcestershire wanting to upgrade and transfer their communication systems.

Our population profiling and risk stratification work is being used to inform a range of activity across the Leicester, Leicestershire and Rutland Sustainability and Transformation Partnership area.

Working on a pilot with Birmingham South Central Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), our Medicines Management and Optimisation (MMO) Team identified and reduced medicines waste in three care homes.

Our Referral Management Service (RMS) has improved care and experience for patients as well as reduced costs. Patients have reported that their needs are quickly addressed and they feel better informed. Health care providers are receiving fuller, more accurate and more appropriate referrals and commissioners have better information and resources to be able to plan and prioritise services.

A repeat ordering project in Warrington improved patient safety, reduced medicines waste and saved money.

Our pilot care home medication review resulted in greatly improved pharmaceutical care for patients, direct cost improvements and potential prevention of unnecessary hospital admissions.

We used a dynamic purchasing system to offer help following a national domiciliary care provider’s difficulties

Our support for the establishment of Chester East Primary Care Network has been held up as best practice by NHS England.

NHS England’s low value medicines consultation, supported by Midlands and Lancashire Commissioning Support Unit (MLCSU), resulted in the prescribing of some inappropriate or ineffective treatments being stopped, benefiting patients and reducing costs. Some of the proposals were amended in light of the evidence supplied by the patient, public and other stakeholder responses.

Our integrated care medicines optimisation project in Wirral resulted in better patient care and potential cost improvements of almost £0.5million.