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The National Pharmacy Association (NPA) chairman Olivier Picard warned pharmacists at the Pharmacy Show in Birmingham yesterday not to wait for the government to fix funding for independent prescribing (IP) and "get on that journey" as soon as possible.

Responding to a question from the audience about a lack of funding for IP and Pharmacy First, which stands at £17 per consultation in England, and whether he thought it is financially viable for pharmacists to provide these services, Picard urged pharmacists to get on with IP training so they are prepared once the funding is sorted out.

"I have a lot of privilege making noise from the sideline but I'm not in the room negotiating," said Picard, who used to sit on Community Pharmacy England's committee,

"I agree that the money they offer for prescribing, some contractors will have to think long and hard about whether they can do it or not.

"But we are at a crossroads where if we'e not going to do prescribing now, in two or three years' time, we may have a different government and if you want to look into the health policy of Reform, they want to bring back smoking in pubs.

"So, we are going to be really struggling with independent prescribing to get it done. We do indeed need to get on with stuff. But I'm not a believer that we should be delivering services at a loss."

The NPA recently launched its own IP training programe which it said "bridges the gap between qualification and real-world practice" and will give pharmacists "the knowledge, tools and support to confidently deliver prescribing services in community pharmacy and distance selling pharmacies".

Picard said he will ensure the three IPs he employs across his four pharmacies undergo IP training and urged other pharmacy owners to do the same. His mesage was clear: do not wait for government funding to improve.

"I have three independent prescribers across my four pharmacies," he said. "What I'm going to do over the next six to 12 months is I'm going to take them on exactly that journey of training because I do believe the funding will get resolved one way or another.

"What I won't do is wait for the money to be resolved to start thinking about independent prescribing. So, my advice is get on that journey, do your training if you haven't, become a specialist, develop your pathway and then, when the funding is right, you can engage."