Kate Thomas of Sylvia Williams Chemists on Cowbridge High Street has won the I Love My Pharmacist award for best Welsh Pharmacist of 2016.
Mrs Thomas was voted the winner by customers and has been recognised by the ILMP pharmacy association as a ‘pharmacist who goes the extra mile for patients in her community’.
As a community pharmacist Kate is often called upon to support patients with more than just their medication. A particularly happy patient is Richard Watson, 41, who has managed to turn his life around thanks to the advice and encouragement he received from Kate and her team. Thanks to Kate’s support Richard has managed to come off his diabetic medication completely after losing 50% of his body weight in two years.
Richard was delighted to hear that Kate had won the Regional round of the Award and said: “My pharmacist Kate, and her staff in Sylvia Williams Chemist, really helped me turn my life around and I would be lost without my community pharmacy. They encouraged and supported me to lose weight and achieve my goal of coming off my medication and this has inspired me to go on and help others lose weight. I am really grateful for their help and I wish Kate every success.”
Kate Thomas said, “I would like to thank everyone for their votes. I will be really proud to represent Wales in this national event run by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society. I am really passionate about community pharmacy and the role we play in the primary care team, working alongside our fellow healthcare professionals to assist the public in staying healthy.”
Community pharmacies under threat
Mrs Thomas added however, that the finances of pharmacies in Wales may not be as healthy as their outpatients.
She said, ““Community pharmacies are a local lifeline in the NHS - yet in the Vale of Glamorgan several are set to close.
“Community pharmacies play a far bigger role than many people realise. Along with dispensing medicines they play a key part in providing local healthcare, from treating common ailments through to healthy living support programmes tailored to the communities they serve. And with the pressure ever increasing on GP surgeries, doctors and nurses at this time, the public need to use their local, independent pharmacy instead of booking an NHS appointment.”
Vale MP Alun Cairns, who visited the Sylvia Williams Pharmacy to congratulate Kate on achieving the award, said “I am urging local people to use community pharmacies such as Sylvia Williams in Cowbridge whenever possible. Not only are these small businesses part of the fabric of the community, they represent part of the solution to Wales’ GP crisis.
“Kate Thomas is a stalwart of the community and thoroughly deserves to be recognised for her work with this award. Long may small pharmacy practitioners like Kate, who go the extra mile, continue to survive and serve local people.”