FAQ

Before sending us a message check this FAQ.

Send a message

For support or suggestions, questions or problems, click here to send a message to the PharmOutcomes team.

Send a Message

For support or suggestions, questions or problems please send us a message using the form below - we'll get back to you as soon as we can with an answer, usually within the same day. Remember to check any spam folder you may have for a response.

Do not include Patient Identifiable data in your message to our helpdesk. Helpdesk uses normal email which is not a secure communication method.

Your login name, Pharmacy F-code or Store number as appropriate
If you do not have an ODS code, enter "N/A"
The name of your Pharmacy, Surgery or Commissioning Group as appropriate
After submitting a message, please do check your email for any response, as we may need clarification, or may not be able to reach you by telephone immediately.Responses will come from "EMIS", and you may need to check that responses are not hiding in a "junk" or "spam" folder in your email system.

Lost your password?

Click here to reset your account password with your Username and Email.

Reset Password

If you have lost your password, then you can fill in the two answers below and a link will be emailed to you immediately allowing you to reset your password

This must match the email address already registered on the system for your username.

Activation Code

Click here to get login in details for your new account with an activation code like this: AFD-3EG-DEP-RS0-KMG.

Activate Account

If you have received a letter or email with an Activation Code, then you can enter it here.

e.g. AFD-3EG-DEP-RS0-KMG

System News

Click here to view recent news about the PharmOutcomes system.

COVID Vaccination Service

Quick Links

Getting Started

The following guides will help you get started quickly:

Notices

Escalation Process

New query comes in from a specific site about any kind of mobilisation issue (supply of equipment, consumables, vaccine, tech kit, any other mobilisation query)

Please review the FutureNHS webpage here that has guidance on resolving issues and escalation processes for issues.

Mobilisation query comes in from a site which has tried the vaccine service desk but hasn’t got a resolution

Please contact your System Vaccination Operations Centre (SVOC). If you are unsure of how to contact your SVOC, please ask your Vaccination site lead.

Mobilisation query comes in from a region which has tried to resolve a site query but hasn’t got a resolution

Please contact the National Vaccine Operations Centre via agreed channels.

Specific change to site details comes in, eg change of site location, site unable to operate and won’t go live, correction or update to any details (eg correction to postcode, updated contact name / email / phone etc)

Please review the process for site changes on FutureNHS here.

Overview

As widely reported in the national media, the COVID-19 vaccination programme in England has started.

EMIS’ Pinnacle PharmOutcomes is one of the point of care systems accredited to support the delivery of COVID-19 vaccinations.

Data captured in accredited systems will automatically feed back into your GP clinical system. In MESH accredited GP practice systems, this means the information on vaccination will flow directly into the GP system workflow, this applies to TPP only. The route to EMIS Web is via NHSD data feed overnight. Vision and Microtest practices will receive vaccine notifications via NHS mail.

Based on communications released by NHS England (Published 20 November 2020), vaccinations will be administered in three ways:

  1. NHS trusts
  2. Large-scale vaccination sites, akin to COVID-19 testing sites
  3. Community/primary care led roving teams

We are operating in line with guidance directly from NHS England, NHSX and NHS Digital.

Reporting

The national specification requires that accredited solutions provide a set of reports to the centre where the data will be coordinated. The PharmOutcomes solution is fully compliant with this requirement.

PharmOutcomes offers a range of reports to vaccination sites that are available from the Reports Tab, please see the user guide Accessing COVID Vaccination Activity Reports.

Support

Please review the FutureNHS webpage here that has guidance on resolving issues and escalation processes for issues.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Pinnacle’s PharmOutcomes platform?

Pinnacle is an EMIS Group company. The PharmOutcomes platform is a secure, web-based solution used by more than 11,000 community pharmacies to record and manage services such as flu vaccinations.

The software has been developed to be used at point of care by healthcare professionals delivering vaccinations across the country.

System features include:

  • Consent management
  • Practitioner management and audit of activity
  • Patient validation via PDS
  • Structured template to ensure all required data capture
  • Staged service delivery option
  • Bar code scan functionality to populate vaccine fields
  • Interoperability with the NHS Immunisation History providing display of vaccination history and update to the NHS Immunisation History post vaccination
  • Automatic GP notification via MESH on saving the record.

The solution supports real time data capture whilst patient facing. Data entry is optimised through the use of bar code scanners to populate vaccine information, expiry date and batch numbers and also links directly with the NHS Immunisation History to display vaccination history vs Flu and COVID-19 for practitioners to view. An update to the NHS Immunisation History following immunisation is sent overnight and the patient’s GP is informed of a vaccination event via MESH to ensure effective update to the patient record. The system offers a solution for vaccine delivery in both a mass vaccination centre and other primary care settings.

How will the mass vaccination centres work?

This short animation explains how PharmOutcomes will support mass vaccination centres

Can I use PharmOutcomes to deliver COVID-19 vaccinations in community pharmacy?

Not at present; we will advise if, as and when this changes.

Can I use PharmOutcomes to deliver COVID-19 vaccinations in acute hospital settings?

Not at present; we will advise if, as and when this changes.

When will the PharmOutcomes solution be ready?

The PharmOutcomes solution is ready now and fully meets NHS England specifications. The services have been set up ready for 1 December 2020, though the actual start date will depend upon vaccine availability. It will go live on the instruction of NHS England.

Which systems does PharmOutcomes integrate with?
  • Personal Demographics Service (PDS)
  • NHS Immunisation History
  • EMIS Web
  • SystmOne
How does data get from PharmOutcomes into GP systems?
  • PharmOutcomes uses NHS Digital’s FHIR and MESH mechanisms to integrate with EMIS Web and SystmOne.
  • Cegedim Healthcare Solutions and Eva (Microtest) practices will receive a daily data export which will populate the clinical record.
How is patient call and recall being managed?

Guidance is being provided directly to NHS England regional teams, ICS/STPs, CCGs and PCNs by NHS England (centrally).

Is there a national appointments system?

Yes - guidance can be sought directly from NHS England for more information.

We understand that this will be optional and organisations will be able to use a local appointments system of their choice.

Does the FHIR message that’s sent from PharmOutcomes into the GP systems include SNOMED CT codes?

Yes - some clinical systems will be able to automatically interrogate these codes for auto-filing into the record. This is dependent on NHS Digital completing the specification for auto-ingest (expected imminently).

EMIS Web will become capable as soon as this information is provided by NHS Digital and they have assured the solution.

PharmOutcomes Technical FAQs

How do I access the PharmOutcomes system?

PharmOutcomes works both over the internet and HSCN/N3 (including PDS and NHS Immunisation History functionality)

Login page: https://pharmoutcomes.org

Does PharmOutcomes work over the internet, or must I use HSCN or N3?

PharmOutcomes works both over the internet and HSCN/N3 (including PDS and NHS Immunisation History functionality).

How do I set up PharmOutcomes?

Access to PharmOutcomes is currently being set for all sites.

Users at mass vaccination centres should start to receive platform access information week commencing the 7th December 2020.

PCN sites are being set up in 3 waves. A letter was sent by NHS England to all wave 1 sites and PCN leads have been asked to return site information via a webform. A link to the webform was sent out to PCN leads on the 8th December 2020.

For wave 1 sites who have not received the letter or webform access information, or for wave 2 and 3 sites requiring more information, a dedicated email has been set up for questions and clarification. This is:

england.covidvaccs@nhs.net

Once set up on PharmOutcomes, users will receive initial access information by email from Pinnacle. This will be sent to the email provided by the user for set up. Please log in to the platform at https://pharmoutcomes.org and:

Reset your password to one that meets the security standard

  • Confirm the password
  • Select a 6-letter security word that will be used typically on initial access.

For governance reasons, users must reset their initial password within 3 days of receiving the activation email from Pinnacle.

How do I use PharmOutcomes?

You can access the video guides from the service template sidebar.

How are batch numbers recorded?

Batch and expiry date information can be auto-populated using a bar code scanner - see video guide. Alternatively sites can add batch information to the system via a dedicated template to support easy population of information from the service screen. Using this approach introduces an option to select batch and expiry information in the main service screen that will auto-populate as detailed in the guide below:

Barcode Scanners - will mine work?
  1. Functionality to support data entry in PharmOutcomes includes the use of 2D bar code scanners to scan a GS1 data matrix on the COVID-19 vaccine. Scanning this barcode will populate the vaccine details, batch number and expiry date fields.
  2. To support scanner testing we have introduced a test page that can be accessed without logging in to the system.
  3. To access the scanner test page, from the PharmOutcomes About page at https://pharmoutcomes.org please click the "About" tab.
  4. Please follow the instructions in the support document
What hardware do I need to make PharmOutcomes work?

PharmOutcomes is an internet-based system that will run on any currently supported full featured browser with JavaScript enabled. This includes:

  • Internet Explorer 8 or greater
  • Chrome
  • Opera
  • Edge
  • Firefox
  • Safari
In a multi room clinic will you need to determine which patient goes to each vaccinator if loaded in advance at clerk in point?

No - all vaccinators can access all partial records and pick these up.

The solution is site specific not user specific so it won’t matter which vaccinator the patient goes to as any will be able to pick up the record

What happens if a patient doesn’t have an email address?

Patient email is a non-mandatory field and will only appear if the patient consents to receive emails. If they cannot receive emails a leaflet can be provided at the point of vaccination.

Can we pre-load booked appointments into the system?

You can enter the initial information but will need to make sure you can answer the screening questions. There isn’t an option for bulk additions.

Can patients pre-fill their information/consent before they attend the clinic?

Not at present for COVID-19 vaccination.

Can you identify a cohort as NHS staff group for a specific organisation?

This is not within the national specification at this time.

Does PharmOutcomes access the GP record for flu vaccination information using e.g. National Care Record etc?

The vaccine information/history for flu and COVID-19 is displayed in the screen via the NHS Immunisation History (accessible over internet or HSCN/N3). If working over HSCN/N3, with a valid smartcard and reader, the user can access National Care Record via a hang tab in the right hand side of the page.

Are we able to scan QR codes/barcodes of letters brought to find patients as well as the manual search?

This is not within the national specification at this time.

Can the clinician see patients’ allergies and sensitivities through PharmOutcomes?

This can be achieved via National Care Record (assuming the data is there) and this requires using PharmOutcomes over a HSCN/N3 connection and using your smart card.

What devices does PharmOutcomes work on?

The optimum experience is a laptop, though it will also work on tablets and in some cases, on mobile phones.

Can we record reasons for not vaccinating in PharmOutcomes?

Yes - reasons for non-vaccination can be recorded and will be reported back to the NHS Immunisation History.

Is there a central admin in each system to setup/admin accounts?

Initial set up is through the webform referenced above, and we will bulk add these initially. There is a site admin function that can also add users locally.

A guide is provided to help administrators with key actions below.