Evaluation of Specialist Mental Health Pharmacists Training Pathway

The NHS Mental Health Implementation Plan sets out the commitment to improving and expanding mental health services across England. One strand of work is to ensure that the mental health needs of adults with severe mental illness are supported in community care settings by specialist pharmacists.

To achieve this priority outcome, Health Education England (HEE) have developed a pilot training programme for specialist mental health pharmacists. Initially, up to 50 trainees will participate in the pilot. SQW has been commissioned by HEE to collate external independent data and provide insights from our analysis. We will be providing both formative and summative evaluative assessments on the educational process, the learning experience, its costs and benefits and any early effects on services.

The evaluation is running from October 2021 into 2022. It will involve qualitative fieldwork with trainees and professionals working in the sector, as well as surveys and analysis of existing secondary data and documents. Reports will be published to present the evaluation findings.

For further information regarding SQW's evaluation, please contact Lauren Roberts, SQW Director, lroberts@sqw.co.uk or Aurora Diaz Lopez (HEE National Programme Manager).