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ePharmacy Programme

HSC ePharmacy Logo

The ePharmacy: Primary Care Digital Reform Programme is a major Health and Social Care digital transformation programme that aims to create:

“a safe, seamless and digitally enabled community pharmacy and prescription service that empowers patients, supports clinicians, and streamlines administrative delivery, improving medicines optimisation across Health and Social Care.”

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The programme will transform community pharmacy and prescription services across Northern Ireland through the delivery of four linked projects:

  1. Go Pharmacy NI – a digital platform supporting the delivery and expansion of clinical services within community pharmacy.
  2. Electronic Transfer of Prescriptions (ETP) – enabling the secure digital transmission of prescriptions from prescribers to community pharmacies and onward for reimbursement.
  3. Prescription Processing & Validation (PPV) – replacing legacy prescription reimbursement systems with a modern digital solution capable of processing electronic prescriptions and pharmacy claims.
  4. Drug Masterfile Replacement Project – providing the authoritative medicines dataset required to support prescribing, dispensing, reimbursement and clinical decision-making.

Together, these initiatives will modernise pharmacy services, improve patient access, reduce paper-based processes, support medicines optimisation, enable new models of care closer to home and strengthen integration across Health and Social Care.

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Kathryn Turner – ePharmacy Programme SRO

 

“The ePharmacy Programme represents a once-in-a-generation opportunity to transform how pharmacy and prescription services are delivered across Northern Ireland. Through Go Pharmacy NI, Electronic Transfer of Prescriptions, Prescription Processing & Validation and the Drug Masterfile programme, we will create a safer, more connected and digitally enabled service that benefits patients, community pharmacy teams and healthcare professionals alike. The significant investment secured in 2026 demonstrates a shared commitment to modernising primary care and ensuring that people can access high-quality care and medicines services closer to home. As Senior Responsible Owner, I am committed to working collaboratively with our stakeholders to deliver this ambitious programme and realise its benefits for citizens across Northern Ireland.“

                                                                                                                             Kathryn Turner – ePharmacy Programme SRO

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Programme Funding

In May 2026, the Northern Ireland Executive announced significant investment in the ePharmacy Programme through the NICS Transformation Fund. Formal funding was announced on 26 May 2026. The programme is expected to require investment of approximately £96.4 million, with funding support including:

  • £42 million from the NICS Transformation Fund, announced on 26 May 2026.
  • Additional support from Strategic Planning and Performance Group (SPPG) and Digital Health and Care NI (DHCNI) to support the delivery and ongoing sustainability of the programme.

This investment recognises the strategic importance of digital transformation within community pharmacy and prescribing services and will help deliver modern, integrated and digitally enabled services for citizens and healthcare professionals across Northern Ireland.

The ePharmacy programme supports the Health and Social Care NI (HSCNI) Three-Year Plan launched by the Health Minister in 2024, to stabilise services, accelerate reform and deliver safe and sustainable services as close as possible to citizens. The DoH plan prioritises primary care, and the community sector, to release pressure on the hospital sector, bringing care to those who need it as early, and as close to home as possible.

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Diagram titled “Updated Programme Structure Graphic” showing the structure of an ePharmacy programme. At the top are three stakeholder groups: Patients, Pharmacies, and GP Practices. Beneath these are two central programme components: Go Pharmacy Northern Ireland (GPNI), which enables direct access to community pharmacy services and reduces reliance on GPs and hospitals, and Electronic Transfer of Prescriptions (ETP), which digitally transfers prescriptions between clinicians and pharmacies. Below ETP are two supporting systems: Drug Masterfile, described as a stable solution to manage Northern Ireland drug tariff data, and Prescription Payment & Validation (PPV), which checks prescriptions and ensures pharmacies are paid correctly. At the bottom are SPPG and BSO-FPS. A vertical green bar on the left labels the overall framework as “ePharmacy Programme.” The graphic uses a green and blue colour scheme with rounded rectangular sections connected in a hierarchical layout.

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High level programme benefits include:

  • Reducing healthcare costs and enhances efficiency in general practice, community pharmacy and HSCNI.
  • A “shift left” primary care workload, alleviating pressure on GPs and reducing emergency service demand
    Improving patient access and convenience.
  • Mitigating the risk associated with paper-based delivery of services.
  • Future proofing the systems for remunerating community pharmacies.

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ePharmacy Delivery graphic, showing a year by year overview, with a highlevel summary on the key dates.

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ePharmacy in the news:

Health Minister welcomes additional £100m Transformation and National Lottery funding | Department of Health

Digital Dispatches, Episode 36: ePharmacy – DHCNI – June 2024