Reading List

A curated Reading List to support and extend learning from the Cross-Cultural Safety and Sensitivity for Pharmacy Teams course.

These resources are for pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, dispensers, medicines counter staff, delivery staff, managers, locums and other pharmacy team members. They offer practical guidance on person-centred care, diversity, communication support, health literacy, accessible information, and interpreting and translation services.

The professional standards resources below are Great Britain-facing through GPhC, while most operational communication-support resources are England-facing through NHS England. Learners in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland should follow equivalent local guidance and local pharmacy policies.

1. Pharmacy Professional Standards

• GPhC - Standards for pharmacy professionals
  The core professional standards for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians in Great Britain. They emphasise person-centred care, recognising and valuing diversity, and respecting cultural differences.
  https://assets.pharmacyregulation.org/files/standards_for_pharmacy_professionals_may_2017_0.pdf

• GPhC - Standards for registered pharmacies
  Standards for registered pharmacies in Great Britain, covering safe services, privacy and dignity, governance, and expectations for person-centred care.
  https://inspections.pharmacyregulation.org/standards

• GPhC - Equality guidance for pharmacies
  GPhC guidance for pharmacy owners and teams on equality of opportunity, respecting diversity, and improving the experience and outcomes of people using pharmacy services.
  https://assets.pharmacyregulation.org/files/2023-02/gphc-equality-guidance-for-pharmacies-december-2022_0.pdf

2. Accessible Information and Communication Support

• NHS England - Accessible Information Standard
  Overview of the Accessible Information Standard, which covers information and communication needs arising from disability, impairment, or sensory loss.
  https://www.england.nhs.uk/publication/accessible-information-standard/

• NHS England - Accessible Information Standard requirements (DAPB1605)
  Detailed requirements explaining what services must identify, record, flag, share, meet, and review for accessible communication needs.
  https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/accessible-information-standard-requirements-dapb1605/

3. Interpreting, Translation, and Health Literacy

• NHS England - Interpreting and translation in primary care
  Explains local commissioning arrangements for interpreting and translation services in primary care in England and how teams should access language support.
  https://www.england.nhs.uk/interpreting/

• NHS England - Improvement framework: community language translation and interpreting services
  A practical framework for improving community language translation and interpreting services in primary care, aimed at managers and team leads.
  https://www.england.nhs.uk/long-read/improvement-framework-community-language-translation-and-interpreting-services/

• NHS England - Enabling people to make informed health decisions
  NHS England's health literacy page with practical communication approaches such as teach-back, chunk and check, use of pictures, and plain language.
  https://www.england.nhs.uk/personalisedcare/health-literacy/

Use these readings to deepen your knowledge of person-centred care, cultural humility, interpreting and translation, accessible information, and practical ways to reduce communication barriers in pharmacy practice.