Teenagers offered birth control pill without prescription

December 12, 2009 by Shawn Douglas
Filed under: News

Teenage girls in inner-city London will be able to acquire birth control pills without prescription in a new NHS pilot program.

Three pharmacies in inner-city London’s Southwark and Lambeth — areas known to have some of the highest teenage pregnancy rates — are set to participate in an NHS pilot program that offers birth control pills without prescription, similar to what is currently done with the morning-after pill.

The two areas have been given a target of 40 to 60 percent reduction in teen pregnancy rates, and the pilot will last for at least a year. Girls would be required to participate in an interview with a qualified pharmacist before receiving the pill.

In 2007, teen pregnancy rates in Southwark were 76 out of every 1000 girls under 18. In Lambeth, the rate was 74 out of every 1000.

The Southwark Primary Care Trust (PCT) began working on the project a year ago in conjunction with King’s College London. A training course was developed at the college, and pharmacists were trained in preparation.

Cuthbert Churinder, a pharmacist at Ridgeway Pharmacy, received training from King’s College and has been participating in the pilot program for a few weeks.

“We do a lot of morning after pills here, I think the highest number in Southwark and Lambeth, about 220 consultations every month,” said Churinder.

“I think the PCT is doing the right thing to have chosen us to offer longer term and more reliable contraception to these young girls.”

The Southwark PCT hopes that the service offered in the pharmacy will provide a more relaxed approach to teenagers who would be too scared to ask for contraception. A recent survey found that 20 percent of 16- to 24-year-olds in the U.K. are too afraid to talk about contraception.

“I think the key thing about this service is that it is in a place which is accessible to young women,” said Jo Holmes, representative for Southwark PCT.

“They may already go there to buy cosmetics or medicines. In the GP surgery they sometimes worry they might bump into a neighbor or a member of their family.”

But those against the plan say that there is little evidence to suggest that offering the pill will positively impact teenage pregnancy rates.

“I’m not aware of any evidence this is going to be effective,” said Dr. Mark Haughton, of the Christian Medical Fellowship. “It may be pouring petrol on the flames.”

“Doctors and pharmacists are at the end of the chain. What we need to do is to work on the whole area of relationships — that is what is effective.”