By-passing local Pharmacy using an electronic prescription service

trailingspouse

OH has been using Pharmacy2U for a while now, without incident.

Before, when we were ordering direct from the GPs, he had to remember to ask me to ring them (he can't rely on having mobile coverage where he works), I had to remember to ring them, then I had to spend ages trying to get through, and then we had to wait 2 days before they would be at the pharmacy. And then I had to go and get them.

Now, when he realises he needs more meds, he just goes online and they arrive a couple of days later, posted through the letterbox so it doesn't even matter if there's no-one in.

Energize

jack_pott wrote: »

I had one of those too. I'm not keen, because it's not clear which date your PPC has to be valid: the date you request, the date the DR prescribes, the date it's dispatched, or the date it's received.

It's the day it's dispensed by the pharmacy. Just as if you were to take a physical prescription to a pharmacy.

comeandgo

even though I live in remote highlands our doctors and boots the chemist do all that between them. No need for us to involve a third party.

alanq

If the pilots of NHS Prescription ordering direct (POD) are successful and it is rolled out it may put a stop to these other services.

My local GPs will not accept repeat prescription slips direct to the surgery nor from pharmacists. One has to call POD and order by phone. The prescription is then sent electronically to ones chosen pharmacy and the medicines are available to collect within 2/3 working days. The aim is to reduce the dispensing of unneeded medicines.

[Deleted User]

Energize wrote: »

It's the day it's dispensed by the pharmacy. Just as if you were to take a physical prescription to a pharmacy.

Yes I thought it probably would be, in which case you won't know exactly when that will be. If they dispense on the day after your PPC runs out you'll end up getting fined. (On the High St. it has to be valid on the day I collect, not the date the pharmacist prints the label to stick on the packet, so I always know I have a valid PPC first.)

sheramber

My GP surgery dispenses its own prescriptions ( a rural area with no local chemist) but they sometimes run out of something. Not because they haven't ordered it but because their supplier hasn't got any.

I had to change one my drugs because their supplier was no longer supplying it.

My husband has a prescription which my surgery cannot get. It was prescribed by the hospital. So he has to order a prescription from the surgery and take that to a chemist 20miles away , who can get it. But they have to order it in as in as he is one of only two people who use it and it needs to be kept in the fridge. So they do not keep stocks of it as they cannot return it if not sold.

teddysmum

sheramber wrote: »

My GP surgery dispenses its own prescriptions ( a rural area with no local chemist) but they sometimes run out of something. Not because they haven't ordered it but because their supplier hasn't got any.

I had to change one my drugs because their supplier was no longer supplying it.

My husband has a prescription which my surgery cannot get. It was prescribed by the hospital. So he has to order a prescription from the surgery and take that to a chemist 20miles away , who can get it. But they have to order it in as in as he is one of only two people who use it and it needs to be kept in the fridge. So they do not keep stocks of it as they cannot return it if not sold.

Big companies like Boots, Lloyds etc can get virtually any drug, given 24 hours.


I was prescribed a rare drug that neither my GP nor the Boots pharmacist had even heard of but Boots had it ready next day. (It didn't work).

unforeseen

Energize wrote: »

It's the day it's dispensed by the pharmacy. Just as if you were to take a physical prescription to a pharmacy.

It's not. It's when it is collected at the pharmacy which can be days after the pharmacist has dispensed them.

It is quite common for the PPC savvy person to purchase PPC on the morning before collecting a prescription that had previously been sent to the pharmacy.

trailingspouse

Just had a problem with Pharmacy2U (although not of their making) so I thought I would pop back.

OH orders his repeat prescriptions through them, and hasn't had any issues. However, he recently needed to see the doctor and was prescribed some meds that may have side effects - which could be treated with another med. He did indeed suffer from the side effects, so I rang the surgery and ordered the other med.

And it was sent via Pharmacy2U. I'd thought that they would only do repeats, and that 'one off' prescriptions would go to the pharmacy like they used to. Obviously I was wrong, and I now know that if I need a prescription to go to the pharmacy I have to specifically request it. It's meant that meds that we were expecting to get on Monday won't arrive until tomorrow.

Murphybear

I used to order online and pick my meds up from the pharmacy attached to the surgery. Since we moved to a rural area I have started Pharmacy 2U. A round trip to our nearest pharmacy is about 13 miles so it’s a no brainer really.