The Pharmacy of Your Choice Scheme will have gathered information about 80 per cent of users in the Maltese islands by the end of this year, the Prime Minister said on Tuesday.

Lawrence Gonzi was speaking when he visited two pharmacies in Mellieha, accompanied by Health Minister Louis Deguara and Competitiveness and Communications Minister Censu Galea. He spoke to various clients who went to the pharmacy to collect their medicines.

They told him that the POYC was convenient because it saves them the hassle and time they would have spent going to Mater Dei or the Mosta health centre to collect their medicines.

They added they were collecting the medicines from a pharmacist they trusted and who, in turn, can give them advice – something that was not possible before.

Pharmacists told Dr Gonzi that the system, which they described as very user-friendly, kept track of the medicines they dispensed.

In fact, they said that several patients asked them not to give them the prescribed medicines because they still had left over.

Dr Gonzi pointed out that talks with the Chamber of Pharmacists about this scheme started some three years ago.

“This scheme is very beneficial to elderly people and people who find it difficult to leave home because they leave behind sick people or people with a disability,” he said.

He said that the trigger to speed up matters and introduce the scheme was when, several months ago, he met a family with a disabled person who told him about the difficulty they had to collect medicines.

This scheme was first introduced in Gharghur in December, with around 550 people making use of it. It was then introduced in Mgarr on 14 January to the benefit of around 600 people.

It is expected to be implemented in Naxxar, Bugibba and Qawra in February and St Paul’s Bay and Mosta in March.