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A record number of consultations for common health conditions took place in community pharmacies in Wales, according to the latest statistics published by the Welsh Government.

Pharmacies provided 462,000 consultations as part of the Common Ailments Service between April 2024 and March 2025, “the highest number ever recorded”, the Government revealed.

Nearly 346,000 people used the service, which offers free advice and treatment for 27 common conditions and is available in 99 per cent of pharmacies across the country. Sore throat, hay fever, conjunctivitis and dermatitis were the most common reasons people used the service.

Pharmacies also provided more than 53,000 consultations for sore throat treatment as well as 33,000 for contraception advice and treatment and 121,000 for emergency supplies of medicines, with pharmacists supplying over 189,000 prescription medicines to patients who had run out.

In total, pharmacies dispensed more than 80 million prescription items during the same period. The Government also revealed pharmacies across Wales carried out over 600,000 clinical consultations in the last 12 months.

The health secretary Jeremy Miles said: “Nearly half a million consultations in a single year shows just how much people value being able to walk into their local pharmacy and get the help they need quickly, without having to wait for a GP appointment.

"We are working to ensure more people can receive convenient care closer to home, and expanding access to these services is a key part of that.

“The right care, in the right place, at the right time – that is what people in Wales want and what our pharmacies are delivering.”