Accuracy checking

Question 1

Legal prescription requirements

Answer 1

Signature of prescriber
Address of prescriber
Date (28 days Sch 2 & 3 CDs, 6 months POM)
Prescriber’s particulars (e.g. qualifications)
Patient name
Patient address
Patient age (if under 12)

Question 2

Terms of Service

Answer 2

Type of prescription (NHS vs Private)
Type of prescriber (Doctor, Dentist, Nurse)
Item available on the NHS (check formulary)

Question 3

Accuracy of dispensing - how to do it

Answer 3

Item against Rx
Label again Rx
Label against item

Question 4

Things to consider:

Answer 4

Drug name
Strength
Form
quantity
patient name
directions (dosage instructions)
cautionary & advisory labels (found in the BNF)
patient info leaflet (PIL)
warning card (e.g. steroid card – check BNF to see if a card is needed)
missing items
added items
expiry dates
measuring spoon or oral syringe.

Question 5

Patient specific directions –hospitals

Answer 5

A hospital drug card (electronic or paper) consists of the medicines a patient is to have administered.
Medicines written on a drug card are described as a ‘Patient specific direction’ (PSD)
These are exempt from the requirements of ‘The Human Medicines Regulations 2012’
Terms of service do not apply; but sufficient information must be included for the instruction to be safe (for administration or sale/supply).
PSD are not defined in law - accepted to be “a written instruction from a doctor, dentist or non-medical prescriber for a medicine to be supplied or administered to a named patient after the prescriber has assessed that patient on an individual basis”.
Most hospitals will describe this as prescribing; in that the person writing the instruction must be a prescriber.
Hospital orders to supply are usually a transcription/electronic order of a ‘written instruction’/PSD – supply doesn’t take place from the PSD itself.
The clinical check takes place before transcription.