Repeat prescription.Chemist collection is going to stop. - NRAS

NRAS

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Repeat prescription.Chemist collection is going to stop.

Philip profile image
26 Replies

Repeat Prescptions

I ve received a letter from the NHS stating that from September 2016, the chemist is no longer allowed to collect repeat prescription from your GP and only you or your carer may order meds through your gp.

WHAT THE HELL DO WE DO NOW? Especially blister packs.

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Philip profile image
Philip
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26 Replies
fastball profile image
fastball

I wonder why? I cant imagine why this would happen. Its going to make life a lot harder for some people, Hope you have another chemist near by that can get them for you.

Chris

Philip profile image
Philip in reply to fastball

I'm thinking this is going to be a national thing, ive just phoned my Chemist and they are having a meeting because this isn't from their side, it from the NHS and the name of the group ic called, Clinical Commissioning Group,I shall find out more as the week goes by. there was a bit of hope for people on blister packs, lets hope its going to let us all know what is what.

allanah profile image
allanah in reply to Philip

That will affect so many disabled and elderly house bound people . Seems very back ward thinking . I hope NRAS can get involved in this on our behalf ?

smithfield profile image
smithfield in reply to allanah

Yes I am thinking about my Mam who lives over 300 miles from me. She is blind and her blister pack is delivered weekly by the pharmacy.

As you say it is going to affect a lot of people.

medway-lady profile image
medway-lady

Are you sure as our GP's do ordering on line that is then sent to a chemist of your choice or you can pick up from the surgery or go in and order. But the GP has to have a bit of paper thus the e order is printed out. If yours is a local chemist it might be worth asking Boots and changing to them. I stress I don't know but this does sound like its a local thing. The CCC might have a problem with this chemist and GP. I hope this is sorted out for you as around here in the country it saves a lot of time doing things electronically.

Philip profile image
Philip in reply to medway-lady

It's from

Southport and Formby clinical commissioning group,

Yes they do online, by letter even fax, lol or handing in the White tear off part of your repeat prescription.

It also says only order when you have 7 to 10 days supply left. I can only imagine they are cutting back the waste meds and stopping people from ordering stuff they no longer take or need.

We will have wait I suppose to hear the outcome from those in the know.

Personally I think we will all drown in the sea of confusion.

helixhelix profile image
helixhelix

That sounds odd...like others my chemist/GP recently moved over to electronic prescriptions. Could it be that what is changing is the automatic repeat where you don't even have to ask, but it just appears? Because if all that's changing is that you have to go online & press "repeat prescription" rather than the chemist doing it and after that it carries on as now, then that would be manageable.

But horrid to have to go back to the days where you had to trudge down to GP to get a bit of paper, and then trudge off to chemists to get it filled.

nomoreheels profile image
nomoreheels

Though we live in the same area of the country you're under a different Trust & Clinical Commissioning Group from me Philip but we've not been informed of this, yet anyway! I've checked on both CCG's websites, yours & mine & nothing's jumping out at me about it being rolled out nationwide either. I've to order some scripts online next week so I'll ask the Pharmacist when I collect them. It'll be a pain if we can't allocate a chemist for collection won't it, it saves time particularly where tablets & CD's are concerned, it's a real step back.

Philip profile image
Philip in reply to nomoreheels

I totally agree with you, maybe other people will find out soon or maybe this is a trail in this area to see how much trouble they can cause lol.

Are you sure they're not moving to electronic prescriptions?

Philip profile image
Philip

We have had electronic for around about a year or so, this is something new as electronic prescription are old hat now lol. We will have to wait and see I suppose.

benjijen profile image
benjijen

Our pharmacy has just moved to electronic prescriptions and now automatically request repeats for my mother and deliver them to her. I order mine on-line via GP site and collect at the pharmacy I want.

Philip profile image
Philip

My drs and chemist do the same as your but this is something else. If i can scan the letter i shall post it for all to see.

Matilda_1922 profile image
Matilda_1922

I have on line access to my GP and order my repeat prescriptions on line which are then sent to the pharmacy of my choice. This is an arrangement agreement with my GP.

I usually collect my prescriptions but the pharmacy does home deliveries as well and while I was working as a district nurse all pharmacies will deliver if arrangements are in place

Sounds like they are taking a page out of the way it's done where I live. Having a public health system, doctors get paid everytime they see you. So you have to go in to your doctor to get a repeat prescription and then the doctor can bill the government for your visit.

Matilda_1922 profile image
Matilda_1922 in reply to

They don't have enough appointments to see each person to do their monthly prescription

in reply to Matilda_1922

We also have lost many of the services we had to run a great public healthcare system for all, rich or poor. Who's the culprit? The USA's model of Private Healthcare that was allowed here in 2005.

The worst thing that can happen to a public heathcare system is allowing a Private healthcare system to operate. Cash for access to jump ahead of the queue.

Slowly and steadily it erodes the public healthcare. It happened here.

Our public system needs to keep our doctors from going private. So the doctors make more money by billing the system with items as seeing a patient for a repeat prescription, and such.

Doctors don't have enough appointments to see each person, so they "piggy back" them and we wait in long lines. The doctor sees double the patients so he gets to bill the public service, now he makes the same or more wage as a private doctor.

PFKAAde profile image
PFKAAde in reply to

Unfortunately in the UK we are starting to see the effects of a few years of right wing governments. Creeping privatisation 'by the back door'. Ancillary services have gone and now certain aspects of healthcare are following.

All in the name of 'austerity'. And we vote them back in because the largely right-wing media has people in its pockets.

you.38degrees.org.uk/petiti...

you.38degrees.org.uk/petiti...

I could go on and on.

Jeremy Hunt is now responsible for a sneaky private scheme called 'sustainability and transformation', nobody has been consulted but a whistleblower spilled the beans:

home.38degrees.org.uk/2016/...

Rise up people. 😀

And I'm not a screaming leftie by the way.

Apologies if overly political, but, well - it is innit.

Ade

in reply to PFKAAde

I love the US I live 10 miles from the boarder and I visit there often. Americans are wonderful people. So I'm not anti- American. I am anti-private healthcare that the US have brought upon us Canadians. It is screwing our healthcare system.

My sister pays $200.00 every month to a private doctor in a prestigious area in Vancouver. She has no health issues or problems, but she married "well" and now she has a doctor that she can go see when she wants to. Like a doctor on call.

Yes people wake up. Do we really want the US healthcare system?

PFKAAde profile image
PFKAAde in reply to

We already have a two-tier healthcare system in reality, those who have insurance through work or privately and those that can afford to just 'go private' can usually get an appointment with a consultant within a week or two at most (and oftentimes transfer to their NHS list effectively paying to 'queue jump').

The rest have to wait for as long as it takes in their specific NHS region, some are better than others. Postcode lottery.

I'm one of the 'lucky' ones, I have insurance and can afford to pay for some things when the insurers won't, but I still would prefer to pay the money that my private cover costs me into an adequately funded NHS that is 'free' for all (at point of service - obviously we do all pay for it via taxes).

The NHS is one of the (few remaining?) great things about the UK, but it's starting to feel the strain after years of chronic underfunding coupled with rising patient numbers, an increasingly elderly population and ever more expensive treatments.

When I needed my first orthopaedic intervention (hip resurfacing) I had a moral dilemma, should I 'go private' or should I stay on the NHS. It felt like a choice for private was like saying I was 'too good' for the NHS. I chose, partly because of the speed with which it all happened, to stay on the NHS. It was by far the worst experience of hospital care I have had (no complaints about the surgery mind).

With further reflection I realised that actually, if you have private cover - in this instance - you actually have a moral obligation to use it. Not only does it mean a far more pleasant experience (usually, not always) but it leaves a bed and a surgical slot free for an NHS patient.

Since then I've had no qualms about going private, make the insurers pay!

Anyway, enough rambling. I hope this prescription lark does not effect too many people negatively. There is an issue with unused drugs and that does cost money - money that could be spent on patient care. If that's what it's about, fair enough in a way.

in reply to PFKAAde

I had to go for what our public system re classified as "elective surgery" once privatizition came into play.

What was my surgery for? Well I had a benign "grape fruit" size tumor in my uterus. My surgery kept getting "bumped" I ended up waiting 10 months. I was house bound as any woman would understand. Needless to say when my surgery date arrived, I was place next to a lady in preop. Her doctor came to her and said "sorry you had to wait 3 weeks to get your eye surgery'

This Japanese lady had to wait 3 weeks to have plastic eye surgery to make her eyes caucasian. Since when is a hysterectomy an elective surgery and oriental to caucasian eyes an emergency?

PFKAAde profile image
PFKAAde in reply to

Elective just means non-emergency in medical parlance. Maybe she had paid? Idk how it works in Canada but I can't imagine they would have done cosmetic surgery for free?

in reply to PFKAAde

The lady paid and jumped the queue of the operating room. There are only so many operating rooms in a city. So now you can pay to have the room first. 2 tier systems wont survive. The private system will win. Money talks. so sad

Philip profile image
Philip

I think all that matters is money, especially to the rich, no matter where you live, in time we will go back to those days were if you Dont have you Dont get, maybe this is the way they want it.

Philip profile image
Philip

I've decided if we do have to pay for our meds and treatments and the fact that i take 30 tablets a day plus 5 injections, then ill just slip away because i Dont have Any money.

PFKAAde profile image
PFKAAde in reply to Philip

😟

Not sure how tongue in cheek that was Phililp, but I shouldn't think there'll be any major change to prescription costs or NHS treatment costs any time soon.

If you do pay for prescriptions though and take meds constantly, it's much cheaper to get a pre-payment certificate. I'm sure you know that though.

That's what I do and at the peak of my medication use it saved me a small fortune.

Ironically the most expensive med of all (biologics) we don't have to pay for. 🤔

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