Resources are vital in creating an effective campaign. You will need campaign messaging and information resources for customers to take away. Posters and leaflets can often be obtained from charities, Public Health England or national equivalents. Suppliers may also provide useful materials, however these should be non-promotional and unbiased.

Identify resources that you can signpost customers to for specific services or for further information. The internet is a mixed blessing. There’s a wealth of useful information, but there’s also plenty of material that is unhelpful or simply wrong. Ensure your team is aware of the most appropriate sites to refer people to. The NHS has a number of reliable sites (NHS.uk, nhsinfom.scot, wales.nhs.uk, OneYou and Change 4 Life). 

Other resources can also be useful. Scratch cards to help break the ice with difficult issues (e.g. alcohol, weight) can be helpful and may be available from public health departments or suppliers. Visual aids can also create interest and encourage customers to engage with the health campaign.

Training for the team should be a planned activity in preparing for a campaign. The pharmacy team need to be confident to engage customers with the campaign. They need to be aware of the key messages and what their role is. Signposting resources, and information about when customers should be referred to the pharmacist, should be shared.

Making Every Contact Count is an initiative that the NHS is encouraging. It aims to use very brief interventions to prompt people to think about their health behaviour. One simple to remember model that could be used is the 3-A model. 

• Ask –  raise the issue with your customers in a non-judgmental way
• Assess – are they considering making a change or not?
• Action – what are the next steps? Can you help now? If they are not interested, let them know where they can get help in the future.

Helping team members put this very brief intervention into their own words will increase their confidence when delivering it.