In this day and age, a lot of people may wonder why we still even go to school or university when everything has become readily available to us at the click of a button via the internet. Yet, although we have all this information at our fingertips, education is about so much more than mastering equations or memorising dates:

Not only is the learning in a classroom or lecture hall still fundamentally different than a few rushed minutes in front of a small screen, a huge part of school and university life are the personal connections you made with adults and peers.

Unfortunately going back to school after a long summer break can be tough both physically and mentally for anyone.

However, it is not just school uniforms, pencil cases and packed lunch boxes. Within community pharmacy there is a lot we can do to support this for both parents and children alike to make it less tough. 

Areas covered in this module include:

• Anxiety and tips you can give to alleviate the apprehension
• Advice on routine vaccinations
• Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)
• First Aid Kits and their suggested contents
• Analgesia
• Coughs and colds
• Head lice prevention and treatment
• Anthelmintics
• Minor skin, eye, ear, and nose disorders

There are also several other Counter Excellence (CE) modules that can be completed in conjunction with this module to improve your overall awareness of what the community pharmacy can do to support a young person and their parents / guardians for returning to school, college, 6th form or university including:

• Minor Ailments https://learning.numarknet.com/counter-excellence/minor-ailments-counter-excellence
• Customer Engagement https://learning.numarknet.com/counter-excellence/customer-engagement
• Customer Service and Selling skills https://learning.numarknet.com/counter-excellence/customer-service-selling-skills

Also of help might be the Pharmacy Excellence (PE) module Pharmacy First   https://learning.numarknet.com/pharmacy-excellence/pharmacy-first which covers a range of common ailments which, as of January 2024 in England, means certain minor ailments can now be treated in the community pharmacy instead of seeing the GP including:

• Sinusitis.
• Sore throat.
• Earache.
• Infected insect bite.
• Impetigo (a bacterial skin infection).
• Shingles.
• Uncomplicated urinary tract infections in women.