Introduction

‘Medicines optimisation helps the right person get the right medicine at the right time.'¹ It considers how people may stop or start their medicines, how they use them over time and how lifestyle changes or non-medical therapies might reduce the need for medicines. This approach helps people get the best outcomes from their medicines, and pharmacy professionals across the NHS play a crucial role in supporting it. By focusing on people and their experiences, medicines optimisation helps:¹

• Improve people’s health outcomes and quality of life
• People to take their medicines correctly
• Avoid inappropriate or unnecessary medicines
• Reduce wastage of medicine and improve medicines safety
• Encourage people to take ownership of their treatment.