A pharmacy at Bolton’s £30 million health facility is set to permanently close after ‘reduced demand’, Bolton NHS Foundation Trust has announced – meaning some patients will have to travel two miles to collect their prescriptions.
Bolton One, located on Moor Lane, opened in 2012 as a partnership between Bolton Council, the NHS, and the University of Bolton.
The facility includes a leisure centre and swimming pool alongside a range of health services, including a GP surgery, physiotherapy, breast screening, x-rays and hydrotherapy.
Now, however, the building is set to lose its integrated pharmacy following what health bosses say is a ‘significant’ reduction in demand.
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The pharmacy will close on Friday, October 11.
Patients who need items that can only be dispensed by the hospital will now have to travel to the Royal Bolton Hospital’s 24-hour prescription collection point, located near to the hospital’s Eye Unit – or the main hospital pharmacy, a two-mile walk away, or about half-an-hour on public transport.
Some pre-planned medicines will still be available in clinic from Bolton One, and medicine that can be dispensed at community pharmacies can be prescribed to be collected from any pharmacy.
Bolton NHS Foundation Trust says home deliveries will be offered to patients that ‘meet set criteria’, and that eight pharmacies are available within a mile radius of Bolton One.
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Rae Wheatcroft, chief operating officer at Bolton NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We’re always reviewing our services to understand how we can best meet the needs of the population.
“Following a thorough review of where our demand is, we have made the decision to close our Bolton One pharmacy so that we can focus our resources where they are needed most.
“The closure of this service will also allow us to utilise the space for other services in the centre of Bolton to improve access to care and treatment.
“We apologise for any inconvenience this closure may cause.”
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