Advice and treatment
Pharmacists can give you advice on a range of conditions and suggest medicines that can help.
They may also be able to offer treatment and some prescription medicine for some conditions, without you needing to see a GP (this is called Pharmacy First).
Conditions they can treat as part of Pharmacy First are:
- earache (aged 1 to 17 years)
- impetigo (aged 1 year and over)- a contagious skin infection
- infected insect bites (aged 1 year and over)
- shingles (aged 18 years and over)- infection that causes a painful rash
- sinusitis (aged 12 years and over)- infection of the sinuses (behind the forehead, cheeks and nose)
- sore throat (aged 5 years and over)
- urinary tract infections or UTIs (women aged 16 to 64 years)
Use the Accurx service to fill in an assessment and self-refer online if you have one of these conditions (or walk in to your local pharmacy).
The pharmacist will offer you advice, treatment or refer you to a GP or another healthcare professional if needed.
Pharmacies will update your GP health record.
If you are not within these age ranges, a pharmacist can still offer advice, but you may need to see a GP for treatment.
Please note: on weekends online self-referral may take longer as the practice is closed.
Getting the contraceptive pill without a prescription
You may be able to get the contraceptive pill from a pharmacy if you need to:
- start the contraceptive pill for the first time
- take the contraceptive pill again after a break from using it
If you already have a prescription for the contraceptive pill, you can use the prescription as usual. Alternatively, you can get the pill from a pharmacy without a prescription if you prefer.
Find a pharmacy that offers the contraceptive pill without a prescription – NHS.
Get a free blood pressure check
You can get a free blood pressure checked at a pharmacy without seeing a GP, if you:
- are aged 40 or over
- live in England
You cannot get a free blood pressure check if you:
- already have high blood pressure
- have had your blood pressure checked by a healthcare professional in the past 6 months
Some pharmacies offer a free blood pressure check.
Find a pharmacy that offers free blood pressure checks – NHS