A public questionnaire about pharmacy provision was developed by the steering group to understand the views of the public in Bexley. This questionnaire was available online through  LBB consultations website page between 26 July and 27 September 2024. Paper copies and an easy read version were also available under request.

The questionnaire was circulated by the PNA Steering Group to engage stakeholders through various routes:

• social media channels
• digital posters displayed in libraries, council hall, hospitals and GP waiting room screens
• Bexley residents newsletters
• London Borough of Bexley staff
• cascaded to relevant groups with Bexley via the council
• South East London ICB network including Community Champions
• Healthwatch Bexley network including distribution of paper and easy read copies
• Patient Engagement Forum

There were 401 responses, with some users requesting paper copies but all completing the online survey, from a population of 246,466 (0.16%), so the findings should be interpreted with some care regarding the representation of the community as a whole. It should also be noted that the demographics of respondents do not fully reflect population demographics with certain groups not adequately represented limiting how generalisable the findings are. Due to small numbers, responses are not broken down by locality. A full copy of the results can be found in Appendix D.

5.1 Demographic analysis

67% of the respondents were female compared to 31% being male and the remaining 2% other or preferred not to say. The majority answering the survey were aged 65 years and over (57%). 52% reported having a disability or long-standing illness of which 10% said it affected them with day-to-day activities.

Majority of the respondents came from a white background (90%), with 5% from an ethnically diverse background and the remaining 5% rather not to say.

Due to small numbers, responses are not broken down by locality. A full copy of the results can be found in Appendix D.

When reporting of details of responses to the public questionnaire, some figures may not add up to 100% due to rounded numbers, multiple choice or some options not being included in a detailed report (e.g. “Prefer not to say”, “N/A” etc).

5.2  Visiting a pharmacy

• 94% had a regular or preferred local community pharmacy which was similar to the respondents in 2022
• most of the respondents (38%) visited a pharmacy a few times a month
• 40% said the time of day and time most convenient typically varied
• just over one third (39%) went to use an NHS clinical service

5.3 Reason for visiting a pharmacy

• the main reason for visiting a pharmacy for most (90%) was to collect prescriptions for themselves
• 62% visited to buy something over the counter
• 39% went to access a NHS Clinical service, e.g Covid vaccination, emergency contraception, help with new medicines, blood pressure checks advanced service
• 38% visited or contacted a pharmacy a few times a month in the last six months
• only 1% said they only used an online pharmacy

5.4 Choosing a pharmacy

• availability of medicines was an important factor (65% felt it was extremely important) when choosing a pharmacy
• the location of the pharmacy (54%) and quality of service (60%) were also extremely important factors
• the pharmacy being accessible (60%), public transport being available (63%) and communication skills (60%) were considered not being important at all
• when asked if there is a more convenient and/or closer pharmacy that they do not use, 26% responded yes, the reason for most of them being habit or personal preference

5.5 Access to a pharmacy

• the main way patients access a pharmacy is by walking, with 61% using this method.
• the next most common method is to use a car (34%).
• 85% reported that they were able to travel to a pharmacy within 15 minutes and 15% being able to get to their pharmacy within 30 minutes.