Policy documents and statements on self-care
Open letter to UN member states for the inclusion of self-care in the UHC agenda
FIP and many other organisations joined the Global Self-Care Federation in calling on United Nations Member States to put #selfcare at the heart of the UN High-Level Meeting on Universal Health Coverage (#UHC) agenda!
Self-care – the ability to manage your health with or without the support of a healthcare provider – is an undeniable aspect of individual health behavior and an important and growing component of health systems.
Ensuring the political declaration on UHC explicitly and directly acknowledges and champions the vital role of self-care will support country-level efforts to institutionalize self-care within national health systems through supportive policies, programmes, financing, and regulations.
Read our open letter and sign on here:
#uhc2030
#universalhealthcoverage
#healthforall
#selfcareforuhc
#globalhealth
#sdgs2030
Towards sustainable and universal healthcare systems and coverage – 1st collection of summaries from the digital events programme
Pharmacists contribute daily towards making health systems more efficient and sustainable, and hence towards universal health coverage (UHC). They do this by supporting and empowering patients and consumers in making better health choices, leading to optimal outcomes. This is part of their role all around the world as healthcare professionals at the hearts of communities, who deal with consultations on a variety of self-care topics in their practice. Self-care spans the whole wellness spectrum, from disease prevention to the management of symptoms and common ailments. The International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) organised a programme of digital events in 2021–22 called “Shaping the future of self-care through pharmacy”, which included two series of events focusing on the policy elements and the practice elements of this role. The first series, “Towards sustainable and universal healthcare systems and coverage”, had the following aims: • To share and discuss strategies adopted by pharmacy leaders and workers, including FIP member organisations, to accelerate universal health coverage by enabling self-care; • To describe sector or area-specific implications, innovations and approaches adopted across practice; and • To discuss the implications of optimising self-care and the role of pharmacy. These events included a variety of international stakeholders and partners in the area of self-care, such as the Global Self-Care Federation, the International Self-Care Foundation, the Pharmaceutical Group of the European Union, the Association of the European Self-Care Industry, and others.
Self-care support for community pharmacy teams - 2nd collection of summaries from the digital events programme
Community pharmacies are often the first point of contact for patients and the public with a healthcare professional, for consultations and triage of common ailments and advice on non-prescription medicines. This important role — which leverages the accessibility of community pharmacists and the trust placed upon them by the population — delivers great value not only for patients and consumers, but also for healthcare systems and society as a whole. Acknowledging the importance of this role, the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) places great emphasis on advocating its adequate recognition but also on providing practising pharmacists with resources to support it and facilitate its implementation in practice. For that reason, FIP organised a programme of digital events in 2021–22 called “Shaping the future of self-care through pharmacy”, which included two series of events focusing on the policy elements and the practice elements of this role. The second series, “Self-care support for community pharmacy teams”, had the following aims: • To provide relevant information, guidance and updates for pharmacists and the pharmacy workforce on self-care so they can take a person-centred approach; • To describe sector- or area-specific implications, innovations and approaches adopted across practice; • To engage front-line workers of the health and pharmacy workforce to know about the self-care realities facing them around the world; • To discuss the implications of optimising self-care and the role of pharmacy; • To consider common conditions and how they can be supported through self-care; and • To assess and discuss the evidence behind treatments used in self-care. These events covered a range of clinical areas that community pharmacists are commonly consulted about. They included experts with different academic or professional backgrounds, who shared their expertise on how pharmacists can have a direct impact on patients’ well-being through self-care.
Pharmacy a gateway to care: policy statement (2017)
This statement underscores the importance and benefits of self care. It recognises both the personal responsibility of patients to enhance and maintain their own health and well-being, and the responsibility of pharmacists to support patients in self care activities. Appropriate support by pharmacists will assist patients in improved or maintained health, greater health self-efficacy, and higher economic efficiency.
Joint Statement of Policy by the International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) and the Global Self-Care Federation (GSCF) on Responsible and Effective Self-care (2021)
The objective of this statement is to describe the united role and intention of the pharmacy profession and industry in delivering solutions to people to facilitate self-care and in engaging with stakeholders including governments to further develop self-care as a core pillar of sustainable healthcare systems. This statement considers regulated or evidence-based selfcare products designed to promote good health, or to prevent and/or to treat ill health through self-care, and to achieve positive outcomes for people’s health. In this context, pharmacists play a key role when assisting individuals as they can provide unbiased, evidence based advice and information about regulated or evidence-based self-care products and services available.
Community pharmacy global report 2021 - Regulation, scope of practice, remuneration and distribution of medicines through community pharmacies and other outlets
FULL REPORT – FOR FIP MEMBER ORGANISATIONS ONLY The scope of community pharmacy practice and the sector’s regulation, distribution of medicines and remuneration are among the aspects explored in this FIP report. The report presents data from 79 countries that took part in a detailed survey between November 2020 and January 2021, giving the most up-to-date snapshot of the state of community pharmacy around the world.
Community pharmacy at a glance 2021 - Regulation, scope of practice, remuneration and distribution of medicines through community pharmacies and other outlets (2021)
The scope of community pharmacy practice and the sector’s regulation, distribution of medicines and remuneration are among the aspects explored in this FIP report. The report presents data from 79 countries that took part in a detailed survey between November 2020 and January 2021, giving the most up-to-date snapshot of the state of community pharmacy around the world.
