Nirvair (Niv) Gill admits he was sceptical when the new owners of the pharmacy he worked in announced that staff training would become a priority. Throughout his career as a pharmacist, it had been drummed into him that dispensing was a pharmacy’s financial bread and butter which left little time for career development.
Fast-forward to today and Niv is pleased to say the new owners “100% followed through on their promise”. They’ve supported him to qualify as an independent prescriber, and he now relishes running a successful travel clinic and weight management service. Dispensing is no longer the focus of his time or energy – that’s handled by HubRx – and for Niv that means “the opportunities to grow are infinite”.
Feeling like a robot
“Pharmacies are real pillars of the community. In fact, that’s one of the reasons I was attracted to a career in pharmacy. I wanted to be on the frontline of the NHS, to help patients and use my clinical skill,” explains 39-year-old Niv.
“But dispensing can get in the way of that. It left me with so little time in the day to be with patients. I always wanted to do much more, but dispensing has always been the priority because that’s where the money was.
“You can enjoy dispensing, but most days you just feel like a robot.”
But that all changed when the pharmacy, based within a leafy suburb of Leeds, was bought by new owners in 2023.
A time for BIG change
“Having new owners can be a worrying time. There’s so much uncertainty across community pharmacy and you never really know what to expect,” adds Niv. “But it was clear very early on that they didn’t want us to focus on dispensing any more.
“They wanted us to better use our clinical knowledge and to expand it. It all sounded great, but I have to admit, I wasn’t sure it would ever really happen. Especially the promise of supporting us to become independent prescribers. It’s expensive.”
But fortunately for Niv the new owners of his pharmacy were the team behind HubRx – the UK’s first automated dispensing hub designed for independent pharmacies.
Their plan was to free up branch level dispensing using HubRx and to invest in building the clinical expertise across the business.
That included making Niv, and many of his colleagues across more than 30 branches, independent prescribers and launching new NHS and private clinical services.
“Kudos to them,” says Niv. “They had a vision for what community pharmacy should be and they’ve really followed through. They’re making it happen and now it feels like this is the way it should have always been.
“The opportunities for pharmacy and for my own career development feel infinite.”
New rewards
Rather than being stuck behind the counter dispensing, Niv now runs a busy travel clinic and a new weight management service.
“I wouldn’t have been able to do this before,” he explains. “Travel appointments especially can be complex,so you need to be able to dedicate real time to spend with patients.
“It’s something I love. I get to use my clinical skill and judgement. No appointment is ever the same. I go home feeling I’ve achieved something.”
No regrets
When asked if he misses the old way of dispensing Niv needs little time to consider his response.
“I’d be gutted if HubRx was taken away now. I’d lose so much, and so would the team and our patients.
“When I speak to friends who are pharmacists they’re surprised by how differently we work at Pharmacy+Health.
“I feel I get more out of my working day now. I’m learning constantly and building more skills. Becoming more well-rounded clinicians means we can give back more to the communities we serve. It’s rewarding.”
