Why are the Daffodil Standards important?

Ensuring that a person’s death is as peaceful and symptom-free as possible is a key responsibility of our health and social care systems.

As the most accessible health care professionals, you and your teams are ideally placed to support patients and the families of those diagnosed with a terminal illness.

Not only can your expertise support effective medicine use that considers the patients’ preferences, but your whole team can be at hand - without the need for an appointment - to advise and reassure families when they really need support.

What patient and carers have told us

“The time I spent chasing prescriptions, was time that should have been spent with my dying husband.”

“I wish we could have had a meeting with the pharmacist at the time of diagnosis so we were more prepared for all the changes in medicines and different side effects.”

“My community pharmacist was the only one who answered my questions clearly and directly.”

“I want to be warned about the side effects of medicines, not have to ask.”

Why sign up?

We know the pressures that community pharmacy is facing at the moment, that’s why the standards can be completed at a pace that works you and your team.

Our Daffodil Standards will help your whole pharmacy team to build on the good care you already provide and target any areas for improvement. You know your patients best, and our Daffodil Standards will help you to quickly create a clear and structured approach that’s relevant to your pharmacy, your team and your patients.

Knowing that your actions are making a real, tangible differences to families at the most difficult of times brings with it immense professional satisfaction for the whole pharmacy team.

Better care for your patients

Throughout the development of the standards, we’ve been listening to community pharmacy teams, patients, and carers about what matters to them. Based on these conversations, the standards have been designed to lead to these core results being met...

More awareness of diagnosis and preferences

Lack of knowledge about when an individual has palliative care needs often leads to the pharmacies “second guessing” from prescriptions and missing opportunities to provide support.

To fill this gap, the standards provide templates and protocols for pharmacies to share with local GPs, other health professionals and patients so that appropriate information about diagnosis and treatment preferences are shared with pharmacy teams.

Expert medicines support

People with life-limiting conditions should be supported to take control of their health care, so they can continue to live life as they choose. A medicines regimen should therefore be able to support this quality of life, not stand in the way of the life people want to lead.

The Daffodil Standards help pharmacists facilitate open conversations about the benefits of medicines that are available to patients, potential side effects and whether the regimen will mean being tied to monitoring routines etc.

You'll be empowering patients to take control of their treatment, according to their wishes.

The best possible treatment during last days of life

Certain medicines for end of life in a community setting can be difficult to obtain, as they’re often not regularly dispensed from a community pharmacy.

When this occurs, the Daffodil Standards help guide your team to take responsibility for obtaining urgent medicines in a timely manner, reducing any burden on the carer.

This means a patient can stay in their own home, in comfort, without needing to be transferred to hospital for essential medicines.

Support for carers

Diagnosis of a terminal illness, and its ongoing treatment, is a difficult and stressful time for the person’s family.

You and your pharmacy teams will likely have the most regular face to face contact with carers. The Daffodil Standards recognise this accessibility of pharmacy staff, and support them to engage with carers in a sensitive manner, and spot signs that further support is needed.