Pharmacists top the Poll
08/05/2006

Pharmacists top health poll

Pharmacists have beaten GPs and dentists to the top spot in a health satisfaction survey conducted in Northern Ireland.

Some 99 per cent of respondents said they were satisfied with pharmacy services, compared to an overall rating of 78 per cent for health and social services in NI.

Eighty per cent of those polled had used a pharmacy in the previous year, making it the most commonly used health service. Within this figure, less than 1 per cent of respondents felt the information they received was not helpful, or that the service was inconvenient.

Despite this, 13 per cent called for pharmacies to be more accessible, for example with different opening hours, nearly 10 per cent wanted shorter waits, and 8 per cent said more pharmacy staff were needed.