Contraception Services Letchworth ? What’s To Know!

Contraception services at Letchworth Pharmacy

Contraception services have come a long way since 1967 (when they were first introduced in the UK) allowing men and women to have readily available and safe ways to help prevent an unexpected pregnancy. Letchworth Pharmacy aims to maintain these options for patients so that they do not have to struggle to search for a contraception method that works for them. So when a new pharmacy-led contraception service was introduced to pharmacies across the country in 2024, we decided to examine the basis of this new service and see whether there would be a need at our pharmacy. Since then, we have incorporated this new service at Letchworth Pharmacy and have found it has been invaluable to many of our patients. So in this blog, we will cover this new service in detail as well as pre-existing contraception options available to patients.

Nowadays, pharmacies are the go-to place for contraception. Before this service was announced, pharmacies could provide virtually all other forms of contraception, including:

• Condoms
• Morning after pills
• Progestogen-only pill (mini pill)
• IUD or Intrauterine Device (NB must have a prescription)
• Contraceptive patch (NB only on prescription)
• Vaginal ring (on prescription)
• Diaphragms

All that was missing was the future management of contraceptive needs thereby allowing patients to more easily access ongoing contraception solutions directly from a pharmacy. Then came the new NHS contraception service at the end of 2023. Now our patients can do exactly that, directly from Letchworth Pharmacy. No longer will these patients need to wait in GP queues, in turn helping to free up hundreds more GP appointments for other patients. This also means patients can receive more immediate, easily-accessible support to help prevent pregnancy in a safe but effective manner.

N.B. The pill has a 7-day rule. When starting it you’ll need to use another form of contraception for the first seven days as it takes time to start being effective.

What are the benefits of contraception services at our pharmacy?

As mentioned, the availability of contraception services from local pharmacies are massive boons to our health service. We can provide patients with swift access to contraception when they need it. Without contraception services being available at pharmacies, patients would have to wait for an available GP appointment. The new contraception service recently introduced at Letchworth Pharmacy completes the portfolio of contraceptive services from emergency contraception to ongoing contraceptive needs. Not only does this improve the swiftness of treatment for patients, it also improves the accessibility of health services more broadly as GP appointments are freed up.

An additional benefit of the availability a range of contraception services at pharmacies is that they will reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies. This also implies a reduction in demand for unsafe abortions, and should help reduce the number of STIs. Remember this is a full sexual-health service (with all the appropriate advice) not just supply of the pill

What Contraception is Best for Me?

Contraception today encompasses many options depending on the needs of the patient and their individual status. Some of the most common contraception methods include:

1. Condoms
2. IUD
3. The Pill
4. Injections & Implants

These methods are used by most people, although this does not necessarily mean that they will be the best option for everyone. If you are unsure what contraception method to use, book an appointment to speak to our prescribing pharmacist Linda who will be able to help you choose. 

For those who do not wish to use any of the contraception methods listed above, you can opt to use traditional contraceptive methods. However traditional contraception does not provide a reliable way to prevent pregnancy, which is why we do not generally recommend them. 

What is Traditional Contraception?

So-called “traditional contraception” includes methods of contraception without medication or medical treatments. An example of traditional contraception includes abstinence during the fertile period, and the rhythm method. The individual tracks ovulation to determine when they are least likely to conceive. Traditional contraception poses some obvious risks and consequences. Abstinence would mean avoiding intimacy. The rhythm method is somewhat “rolling the dice” as to whether you conceive or not!  Nevertheless, depending on your lifestyle, these methods might be preferred.

N.B. We do not recommend using traditional methods if you want to be certain of avoiding pregnancy. If you are worried about using modern contraceptives, or about your sexual health generally, book a consultation with our pharmacist who can discuss any worries you might have:

What is the New Contraception Service?

The new pharmacy-led service allows patients to more-easily access medication and consult with certain pharmacists about the contraceptive pill. Previously this was mainly provided by GPs. The significance of this change cannot be understated. It will allow many more patients to access safe and effective contraception through the convenient location of community pharmacies. Letchworth Pharmacy has been eagerly preparing to provide this new service which is available today. As ever we aim to be at the forefront of clinical service provision by providing high-quality award-winning services. We are well aware that it can be difficult to access our GP colleagues locally. As Letchworth’s leading Independent Pharmacy we will do everything in our power to take some of the burden off our GP colleagues and free them up for those who truly need their services. 

Is there any other benefit?

This newly expanded service can provide further benefits to our patients through education and awareness, due to our pharmacy being situated within the heart of our community. We can help educate patients on safe contraception methods, sexual health and other ways to keep themselves both safe and healthy.  We can usually provide near-immediate advice for patients, thus, preventing unintended pregnancies. 

Conclusion

Along with Pharmacy First our expanded contraception service is another move in the right direction. Having listed some of the benefits of this service we hope it’s clear that making treatment more accessible, but doing so without compromising safety will be an invaluable additional contribution to wider healthcare. Take a look through our website or grab a copy of our practice leaflet to see the wide, and ever-expanding range of healthcare service we provide.

Interested in our contraception service? Book an appointment here:

Reference:

1. https://www.england.nhs.uk/primary-care/pharmacy/pharmacy-services/nhs-pharmacy-contraception-service/