Self care conditions
As well as providing advice on OTC medicines to manage minor ailments, self care can also be about helping customers to take care of themselves in terms of coping with everyday stresses, maintaining personal hygiene to prevent the spread of germs and taking steps to look after their mental wellbeing.
Customers visiting your pharmacy may be feeling exhausted, anxious or worried about their symptoms. You can help them by offering expert advice on ways they can maintain their mental, physical and emotional wellbeing.
Not all minor ailments require a visit to the GP – many can be managed with lifestyle changes and over-the-counter products. Pharmacy teams are well placed to give advice on a range of minor ailments.
Click on the buttons below to find out how you can support customers to self care with common conditions. When advising on self care conditions, make sure you also provide guidance on when customers should see their GP.
- Advise on pain relief options (e.g. topical gels/tablets/medicated patches) to suit the customer’s needs
- Suggest back supports, or products to warm or cool the affected area (such as patches, sprays or gels)
- Signpost to other HCPs such as the PhysioFast Online service available via Boots.com for further support.
- Suggest suitable creams/lotions/ointments to treat flare-ups, or an emollient for everyday care
- Check they know how much and how often to apply the different types of products and recommend smaller travel-sized emollients to apply when out and about
- Give appropriate safety warnings about use and discuss how they can avoid everyday triggers.
- Discuss symptoms and steps taken already
- Give information about the different types of products and lifestyle changes that may help customers to manage heartburn and indigestion.
- Recommend the most appropriate antipyretic agent (to reduce fever) and the dosage
- Give advice on using thermometers
- Explain when they should see a GP
- Be aware of the signs of more serious illnesses such as sepsis, Covid-19 or meningitis to identify when an urgent referral is needed (see NHS website for further information).
- Explain different prevention and symptom relief options available, including guidance on using nasal sprays, steam and saline washes
- Give advice on how long the condition may take to clear up.
- Discuss skin care advice and products to help prevent and treat mild acne
- Identify when to refer customers to the Acne Online Clinic
- Direct customers to Beauty Advisors for advice.
- Recommend suitable pain relief (gels, creams or tablets), appropriate supports and self care advice
- Refer to the PhysioFast Online service available via Boots.com if appropriate.
- Help customers understand the difference between headaches and migraine
- Advise on suitable pain relief products and when it may be appropriate to see their GP.
- Explain the potential causes of earache
- Recommend products to help with the removal of earwax and pain relief
- Advise when it is appropriate to see a GP or refer customers to Boots Hearingcare.
- Discuss options to manage pain, such as medicated lozenges and self care advice, and reassure them that antibiotics aren’t always necessary.
Long-term goals
Many customers have made lifestyle changes to benefit their health during lockdown. Some people may have had more time due to changes in working locations and/or patterns and so have been able to exercise more often, eat more healthily or give up smoking. According to Public Health England, data published by UCL shows an increase of 22 per cent in quit smoking attempts in 2020 compared to 2019.
If customers are interested in looking after their health you could discuss the following:
- Maintaining a healthy weight
- Keeping active
- Eating a healthy varied diet
- Taking a daily vitamin D supplement to support bone and muscle health as well as the immune system
- Giving up smoking
- Limiting alcohol intake to within the recommended limits
- Having good sleep habits.
For customers with long-term health conditions, being able to advise them on how they can best manage their condition to help prevent complications is key. For example, customers with diabetes may need reminders about the importance of footcare or those with hypertension may be looking for blood pressure monitors to use at home.