Talking about care in remote locations

摘要

THE challenges facing pharmacists working in sometimes remote country locations were in the spotlight when the North East of Scotland Local Practice Forum staged its "Remote and rural healthcare" event last month. The meeting was hosted in Aberdeen, but sites in Orkney, Shetland, Elgin and Guernsey all joined in via video-conferencing facilities. Chris Nicolson, director of pharmacy for NHS Shetland and NHS Orkney began the evening with a presentation entitled "Living on the edge". He spoke about some of the unique challenges that face healthcare practitioners who practise in remote and rural locations and some of the practices that have been developed to address these. The audience gained an appreciation of the role that he and his team have in delivering healthcare and some of the innovative methods they employ in Orkney and Shetland to ensure that the services delivered are of the highest quality and ensure patient safety.