COVID-19

Changes to our operations and service

This is a message to update all of our customers who use our pharmacy. Thank-you for everyone's support, kind words and patience over the last few months with the emergence of the COVID 19 Pandemic. As we move into the next few weeks Poole Bay Pharmacy will continue to take the risk posed seriously whilst working very hard to maintain normal service and provide assistance to all those who need it. We are currently letting in two costomers at a time and we encourage everyone to wear face masks where possible in the pharamcy although this is not compulsory. We ask that customers still repect the current guidance on maintaining social distancing. Measures we have taken include staff wearing face masks, a protective screen at the front counter, a regular cleaning schedule and signing prescriptions on behalf of all our patients. We currently sell face masks, hand gels and thermometers as well as having an online shop on our website, which some of you may be interested in using if you prefer not to go out.

I would like to highlight that our amended opening hours remain in place currently:
• OPENING HOURS We are open from 8am - 8pm Monday to Friday, 8am - 5pm Saturday and remain open 10am-2pm on Sunday. This also means we will not answer the phones before 8am or after 8pm. We hope to gradually return to our usual opening hours by end of August. If there are any changes we will put posters up and update our website to reflect this. If there is a long queue we will endeavour to come outside to help give out prescriptions and take in repeat prescription requests to keep the queue moving.

• DELIVERY SERVICE - Poole Bay Pharmacy currently offer free delivery to anyone who is 70 or over.  For those under 70 who require a delivery there will be a charge of £2 to cover some of the additional costs we will incur. For those who wish to make use of this service please call the pharmacy or contact us via our website. Please be aware that as shielding rules come to an end at some point later in the year, as per government guidance, we will need to review our delivery service charge and those eligible for free delivery. For any customers currently on our delivery service who feel they will no longer require deliveries once shielding is over, please contact the pharmacy so we can switch you back to collection.

NOTE: For those customers who live outside a 2 mile radius of our pharmacy it may be easier to get your prescription transferred to a more local pharmacy. With the massive surge in demand for deliveries we will not be able to deliver to those that live some distance away. If unsure please check with the pharmacy first.

• ORDERING PRESCRIPTIONS - We are currently asking customers to order as usual and we will allow up to 2 weeks before they are due. Please do not request more than 2 months at a time or order too early. This will only contribute to medicine shortages. The pharmacy is always very busy and the phone can ring continuously. We would ask anyone who has an internet connection to register and use our website to order prescriptions online. You can also link to an app and use your smart phone to order. Details are set out on our website. This will free up the phone to allow customers who cannot use online services to phone through their prescription orders. It also helps to free up our time to keep on top of the large workload we have. For those who like to come in to order their repeat prescription and are a patient of Westbourne Medical Centre, to avoid queing and save time, please use your white repeat prescription order form, tick what you want then drop this off in the repeat prescription box just inside the main entrance of the surgery. We always put a copy of your latest repeat prescription order form with your most recent prescription. Please note we do ask for 3 working days minimum to process prescriptions. Coming in to collect before your prescription is due only contributes to our workload so please avoid doing this if possible.

Finally I want to express my huge appreciation for how patient and understanding all our customers have been in the last few months. Many of you have sent cards and/or spoken with sincere gratitude and appreciation for what we do. A massive thank-you to every single one of you; it really does make a big difference to us here at the pharmacy to receive such encouraging feedback.

Please keep up-to-date with government recommendations on the Corona virus pandemic and follow their guidance. Our advice will always be consistent with what the Department of Health and NHS England are recommending. We want all our customers to remain safe and Poole Bay Pharmacy is committed to doing our absolute best to meet all your needs during these strange times. We wish you all safe passage in the months ahead. If you have concerns or questions it is best to contact us by phone or message us using our website.

Yours Sincerely,

Atheel Edmunds
(Superintendent Pharmacist Manager)

on behalf of all the Poole Bay Pharmacy team.

Thursday 18th June 2020