Serious shortage protocol will
increase pharmacy workload but
reduce workplace pressure, says
UK politician
Allowing pharmacists to
dispense alternatives to GP
prescriptions in case of shortages is
likely to increase workload for
pharmacists but simultaneously
reduce pressure on them.
Pharmacists were told they would
be allowed to swap GP prescriptions
from 9 February.
Under the Human Medicines
(Amendment) Regulations
2019, pharmacists will
be able to alter the
strength, quantity or
type of drug without
asking doctors as long
as it has the same
effect as the original.
The purpose is to ensure
the continued supply of
medicines in case there are
shortages in the future.
Pharmacy minister Steve Brine
responded to a written question
from MP Anne Morris about the
Government’s consultation before
making this decision on 31 January.
He said: “The Department expects
that where a protocol is in place,
it will reduce pressure on general
practitioners because they do not
have to see all patients to issue a new
prescription.
“For pharmacists, while a protocol
would likely increase their workload,
it would also reduce pressure as
pharmacists would not need to liaise
with GPs every time they get
a prescription.”
The protocol is one
of other options and
will only be triggered
if doctors agree it is
necessary, Mr Brine
added.
He said: “This
protocol would only be
introduced in the case
of a serious shortage, if it
would help manage the supply
situation and if clinicians think it is
appropriate, after discussion with
the manufacturer and/or marketing
authorisation holder when other
mitigation measures have been
exhausted.”
UK Government to spend £11m
preventing medicine shortages
News in brief
KEELE UNIVERSITY AWARDED
OVER £2M TO INVESTIGATE OPIOID
OVERPRESCRIBING
Keele University received a £2.4m
grant from the state-funded body the
National Institute for Health Research
(NIHR) to explore the causes of
painkiller overprescribing and train
GP pharmacists to better help patients
with long-term pain.
COMMON CARDIOVASCULAR AND
DIABETES DRUGS COULD HELP
TACKLE MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES,
STUDY FINDS
Commonly prescribed drugs for
diabetes, heart conditions and high
blood pressure could help treat severe
mental health problems, a study has
shown.
Researchers at the University
College London (UCL), the Karolinska
Institute, Sweden and the University
of Hong Kong found that the use of
hydroxylmethyl glutaryl coenzyme
A reductase inhibitors (HMG-CoA RIs),
L-type calcium channel antagonists
(LTCC) and biguanides on mentally ill
patients reduced the number of their
psychiatric hospitalisation admissions
and self harm.
The Department of Health and
Social Care (DHSC) will spend
around £11m on warehouse contracts
to store medicines as a contingency
measure for a no-deal Brexit, Hospital
Pharmacy Europe understands.
In October last year, health and
social care secretary Matt Hancock told
the Health and Social Care Committee
that the Government had issued an
invitation to tender for additional
storage space to stockpile medicines.
The measure was implemented to
ensure access to medicines in the event
of a no-deal Brexit.
The DHSC told our sister publication
Healthcare Leader that it “expects to
spend around £11m on warehouse
contracts to store medicines in
preparation for a no-deal”.
In October, Mr Hancock said he was
expecting the value of the contracts
to be “in the low tens of millions of
pounds”.
He was, however, unable to share
a more precise figure and said the
Government was buying the space
‘from the market’ and would in some
cases have to build new facilities.
Last month, health minister Stephen
Hammond said the Government had
signed a contract worth around £1m
to accommodate 5,000 pallets of cold
medicines across the UK.
Questioned in Parliament,
Mr Hancock was asked how much the
DHSC has already spent on preparing
for a no-deal Brexit ‘after activating
NHS no-deal contingency plans’. He was
also asked “what the overall bill for
this will be”.
Diverging from what the DHSC
told Healthcare Leader, Mr Hancock
specified in Parliament that “around
£11m has been spent already”,
whereas the DHSC said it is money the
department is expecting to spend.
The DHSC was unable to clarify the
difference between the two statements
at this point.
Mr Hancock said: “The NHS is not
generally buying the extra medicines
that are going into the elongated
stockpiles but the pharmaceutical
industry is”.
“So there have been costs in the
pharmaceutical industry as well but the
cost so far to the taxpayers is £11m and
I expect it to remain around that level
if not a little higher.”
GENETIC TEST IMPROVES SAFETY OF
IBD TREATMENTS
NHS research collaboration, led by the
University of Exeter and the Royal Devon
& Exeter NHS Foundation Trust, has
discovered a gene mutation that allows
the identification of patients at risk of
a drug side effect, allowing clinicians
to tailor alternative treatments.
This finding will reduce the risk of
drug side effects caused by treatment
with thiopurines (consisting of
azathioprine and mercaptopurine).
This group of drugs is commonly used
for the treatment of autoimmune and
inflammatory diseases.
hospitalpharmacyeurope.com | 2019 | Issue 91 | 9