Pharmacy feels like it’s standing at a crossroads right now. Across community, hospital, primary care and digital health, expectations are rising, roles are expanding and yet the workforce feels more fragile than ever.

In this episode of Let’s Talk Health, I’m joined by Yasmin Khosan and Khalid Khan to unpack what this moment really means.

What You’ll Discover

- An Army of Prescribers: What happens when newly qualified independent prescribers enter a system without clear pathways, funding or digital infrastructure to support them.

- Evolution or Identity Crisis: As pharmacy shifts from product focused to patient centred care, how do we protect our USP as medicines experts while embracing AI and automation.

- Pharmacy in 2030: Why this decade could define the profession, and whether we shape the change or simply react to it.

We dig into the reality on the ground. Pathfinder sites that show promise but struggle with interoperability. Systems that still do not talk to each other. Contractors under financial strain while being asked to deliver more clinical services.

At the same time, there is real optimism. The public perception of pharmacy shifted during COVID. Patients value face to face care. Automation could free up time for deeper human connection. Technology can refine dispensing, but it cannot replace the judgement, empathy and safeguarding that pharmacy teams bring every day.

This is a pivotal moment. Pharmacy will change. The real question is whether we secure the funding, roadmap and leadership to shape that future properly.

Let's Talk Health is produced by Urban Podcasts.

I always find these big economic conversations fascinating, especially when they hit right at the heart of healthcare challenges we're all facing.

As a representative of community pharmacies in England and Wales I have seen first hand how Treasury’s decisions, for examples the rise in business rates, rise in the National Insurance (NI), and the overall funding envelop, affects community pharmacies, primary care our wider healthcare care system.

In this episode of Let's Talk Health, I sit down with Matthew Bell Director as Frontier Economics to unpack some of the above and discuss the real impact of economic decisions made by the Government on healthcare, what this year’s Treasury budget might bring, the state of NHS technology and what solutions are needed to put the NHS and health delivery on the right trajectory.

I also asked Mathew what his views are about the policies of various political parties and which ones are more friendly to the healthcare sector.

Matthew's insights are extremely valuable for anyone in healthcare wrestling with these pressures. If you're feeling the fiscal squeeze or excited about AI's potential, this will give you fresh ideas to take forward.

Let's Talk Health is produced by Urban Podcasts.

Imagine getting medicine, dentistry, and pharmacy all in one room, hashing out the real challenges facing frontline healthcare – that's exactly what we do today.

In this debut episode of Let's Talk Health, I bring together Dr Eddie Crouch, a dentist with 42 years' experience and chair of the British Dental Association, and Dr Steve Taylor, a practicing GP for 30 years and co-lead for Doctors' Association UK.

As a pharmacist with 20 years at the patient-health system interface and CEO of the Independent Pharmacists Association, I loved bringing together this conversation – we dive into the shared struggles, innovative solutions, and how empowering our professions could transform care for everyone.

What We Explore

- Frontline Realities: The daily battles each pillar faces – from dental access crises to GP burnout and pharmacy funding squeezes.

- Collaborative Solutions: How uniting our voices could fix systemic gaps, like better integration and policy changes that put patients first.

- Empowerment for Impact: Why giving professionals the tools and autonomy we need is the key to truly transformative healthcare.

This conversation left me hopeful - we've got the ideas, now let's push for the system to let us deliver.

If you're in healthcare or care about it, share this episode with a colleague or policymaker and help us shape the agenda.

Let's Talk Health is produced by Urban Podcasts.