Private prescription

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The term private prescription is a term used in the United Kingdom for a medical prescription which is not supplied under the National Health Service (NHS).

Unlike for NHS prescription there is no special stationery as mandated by the General Medical Council; a private prescription can be printed, handwritten or created electronically by an authorised prescriber on any piece of paper or regulatory compliant electronic system such as Clynxx. The exception is that since July 2006, the Department of Health has required private prescriptions for a Controlled Drug to be prescribed on specified paperwork, the FP10PCD. [1] [2]

A patient usually has to pay a fee to a private practice doctor, and then pay the dispensing pharmacy for the medicine; the price may be more or less than the standard NHS prescription charge. The charge for the medication is based on cost price and markup, as is usual in retail, plus a dispensing fee. The NHS prescription charge in England is a standard fee which is not related to the cost of the drug or quantity supplied; there is no charge for NHS prescriptions in Northern Ireland, Scotland, or Wales. [3]

Electronic Private Prescriptions

In the UK, a private prescription does not need to be handwritten and can be created electronically. [4] Prescribers can create regulatory compliant electronic private prescriptions using the official system Clynxx or other regulatory compliant systems. For a prescription to be compliant as an electronic prescription, it must meet the requirements set in The Human Medicines Regulations 2012. As of 23 November 2021, Schedule 2 and 3 controlled drugs cannot be prescribed electronically for private prescriptions and must be prescribed on the NHS issued FP10PCD (pink forms) which must be submitted to the NHSBSA "no later than the fifth day of the month following which they were supplied." [5] [6] [7] [8]

In June 2023, it was revealed that "only two [electronic private prescription] software developers [were] fully compliant with regulatory requirements". [9] This was following an investigation by the UK Pharmacy Safety Group on the 'Risks to Public Safety' associated with the electronic private prescription softwares. [10]

Related Research Articles

<i>British National Formulary</i> Pharmaceutical reference book for the UK

The British National Formulary (BNF) is a United Kingdom (UK) pharmaceutical reference book that contains a wide spectrum of information and advice on prescribing and pharmacology, along with specific facts and details about many medicines available on the UK National Health Service (NHS). Information within the BNF includes indication(s), contraindications, side effects, doses, legal classification, names and prices of available proprietary and generic formulations, and any other notable points. Though it is a national formulary, it nevertheless also includes entries for some medicines which are not available under the NHS, and must be prescribed and/or purchased privately. A symbol clearly denotes such drugs in their entry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Over-the-counter drug</span> Medication available without a prescription

Over-the-counter (OTC) drugs are medicines sold directly to a consumer without a requirement for a prescription from a healthcare professional, as opposed to prescription drugs, which may be supplied only to consumers possessing a valid prescription. In many countries, OTC drugs are selected by a regulatory agency to ensure that they contain ingredients that are safe and effective when used without a physician's care. OTC drugs are usually regulated according to their active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) rather than final products. By regulating APIs instead of specific drug formulations, governments allow manufacturers the freedom to formulate ingredients, or combinations of ingredients, into proprietary mixtures.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Medical prescription</span> Health-care communication from a physician to a pharmacist

A prescription, often abbreviated ℞ or Rx, is a formal communication from a physician or other registered healthcare professional to a pharmacist, authorizing them to dispense a specific prescription drug for a specific patient. Historically, it was a physician's instruction to an apothecary listing the materials to be compounded into a treatment—the symbol ℞ comes from the first word of a medieval prescription, Latin recipere, that gave the list of the materials to be compounded.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prescription drug</span> Medication legally requiring a medical prescription before it can be dispensed

A prescription drug is a pharmaceutical drug that is permitted to be dispensed only to those with a medical prescription. In contrast, over-the-counter drugs can be obtained without a prescription. The reason for this difference in substance control is the potential scope of misuse, from drug abuse to practicing medicine without a license and without sufficient education. Different jurisdictions have different definitions of what constitutes a prescription drug.

The NHS Electronic Prescription Service is part of the NHS National Programme for IT of the National Health Service in England. It enables the electronic transfer of medical prescriptions from doctors to pharmacies and other dispensers and electronic notification to the reimbursement agency, NHS Prescription Services.

<i>British National Formulary for Children</i>

BNF for Children (BNFC) is the standard UK paediatric reference for prescribing and pharmacology.

The United Kingdom Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 aimed to control the possession and supply of numerous listed drugs and drug-like substances as a controlled substance. The act allowed and regulated the use of some Controlled Drugs by various classes of persons acting in their professional capacity.

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The NHS treatments blacklist is an informal name for a list of medicines and procedures which will not be funded by public money except in exceptional cases. These include but are not limited to procedures which the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has ruled of limited effectiveness and particular brand name medicines. In 2017 there was a proposal for 3,200 over-the-counter (OTC) drugs to be restricted and 18 procedures to be added to the list. This generated some controversy amongst doctors with some arguing that OTC should be blacklisted instead, and others believing the move did not take into account individual patient needs.

The Drug Tariff, also known as Drug Tariff price, is that amount that the NHS repays pharmacies for generic prescription medications. It differs from prescription charges which are £9.65 per item/drug as of April 2023 unless exemptions apply.

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A veterinary pharmacist is a specially trained pharmacist who dispenses veterinary drugs and supplies or products and advice to owners of companion animals and livestock. In addition, they advise the regulatory bodies and are involved in the formulation of veterinary drugs. Veterinary pharmacy is a field of pharmacy practice, in which veterinary pharmacists may compound medications, fill prescriptions, and manage drug therapies for animals. Veterinary pharmacists are licensed pharmacists who specialize in the distribution of medications for animals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pharmacy (shop)</span> Shop which provides pharmaceutical drugs

A pharmacy is a retail shop which provides pharmaceutical drugs, among other products. At the pharmacy, a pharmacist oversees the fulfillment of medical prescriptions and is available to counsel patients about prescription and over-the-counter drugs or about health problems and wellness issues. A typical pharmacy would be in the commercial area of a community.

A formulary is a list of pharmaceutical drugs, often decided upon by a group of people, for various reasons such as insurance coverage or use at a medical facility. Traditionally, a formulary contained a collection of formulas for the compounding and testing of medication. Today, the main function of a prescription formulary is to specify particular medications that are approved to be prescribed at a particular hospital, in a particular health system, or under a particular health insurance policy. The development of prescription formularies is based on evaluations of efficacy, safety, and cost-effectiveness of drugs.

Electronic prescription is the computer-based electronic generation, transmission, and filling of a medical prescription, taking the place of paper and faxed prescriptions. E-prescribing allows a physician, physician assistant, pharmacist, or nurse practitioner to use digital prescription software to electronically transmit a new prescription or renewal authorization to a community or mail-order pharmacy. It outlines the ability to send error-free, accurate, and understandable prescriptions electronically from the healthcare provider to the pharmacy. E-prescribing is meant to reduce the risks associated with traditional prescription script writing. It is also one of the major reasons for the push for electronic medical records. By sharing medical prescription information, e-prescribing seeks to connect the patient's team of healthcare providers to facilitate knowledgeable decision making.

KwikMed is an approved online pharmacy in the United States which has been granted regulatory approval to operate and sell medications online. Based in Salt Lake City, Utah, KwikMed's parent company, Phoenix Capital Management, is located in Scottsdale, Arizona. Specifically, KwikMed has been granted regulatory approval to prescribe medications for erectile dysfunction, male pattern hair loss and smoking cessation provided specific operating procedures are followed.

In the United States, prescription monitoring programs (PMPs) or prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) are state-run programs which collect and distribute data about the prescription and dispensation of federally controlled substances and, depending on state requirements, other potentially abusable prescription drugs. PMPs are meant to help prevent adverse drug-related events such as opioid overdoses, drug diversion, and substance abuse by decreasing the amount and/or frequency of opioid prescribing, and by identifying those patients who are obtaining prescriptions from multiple providers or those physicians overprescribing opioids.

Electronic Prescriptions for Controlled Substances (EPCS) was originally a proposal for the DEA to revise its regulations to provide practitioners with the option of writing electronic prescriptions for controlled substances. These regulations would also permit pharmacies to receive, dispense, and archive these electronic prescriptions. These proposed regulations would be an addition to, not a replacement of, the existing rule.

Pharmacy in the United Kingdom has been an integral part of the National Health Service since it was established in 1948. Unlike the rest of the NHS, pharmacies are largely privately provided apart from those in hospitals, and even these are now often privately run.

Commonly prescribed drugs are drugs that are frequently provided by doctors in a prescription to treat a certain disease. These drugs are often first-line treatment for the target diseases and are effective in tackling the symptoms. An example of the target disease is ischemic heart disease. Some examples of commonly prescribed drugs for this disease are beta-blockers, calcium-channel blockers and nitrates.

References

  1. ↑ "Private Prescriptions for Schedule 2 & 3 CDs". Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC). Retrieved 17 June 2013.
  2. ↑ Randall, Christine (June 2011). "How should dentists prescribe, store, order and dispose of controlled drugs?" . Retrieved 17 June 2013.
  3. ↑ Oxtoby, Kathy (10 January 2012). "Doctors' self prescribing". BMJ. 344: e13. doi:10.1136/bmj.e13.
  4. ↑ "The Human Medicines Regulations 2012". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
  5. ↑ "Clynxx Limited". NPA. 2021-05-24. Retrieved 2021-11-23.
  6. ↑ "The Human Medicines Regulations 2012". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 23 November 2021.
  7. ↑ "Digital Health Records & Electronic Private Prescriptions". CLYNXX. Retrieved 2021-11-23.
  8. ↑ "Private controlled drugs | NHSBSA". www.nhsbsa.nhs.uk. Retrieved 2021-11-23.
  9. ↑ "Electronic private prescription providers under scrutiny". www.pharmacymagazine.co.uk. Retrieved 2024-01-02.
  10. ↑ Kaur, Alison (2023-04-25). "Prescribing Software Compliance Report: The Risks to Public Safety". Uk Pharmacy Safety G. Retrieved 2024-01-02.
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