It is estimated that more than 230 million medication errors occur each year in England (Elliott, 2021). Of these, 21% occur at the prescribing stage and over 50% have the potential to cause moderate to severe harm to patients (Elliott, 2021). Prescribing errors, including those made when writing prescriptions, are relatively common but largely preventable causes of harm, occurring in 4.9% of primary care prescriptions (Avery, 2012) and 7-10% of physician services (Maxwell, 2016). It is hoped that by highlighting legal requirements and best practice recommendations for writing prescriptions, this article will reduce the associated risks by ensuring a clear, and comprehensive legal prescription. Prescription Identification Number All private prescribing doctors have been assigned a six-digit prescription identification number (issued by the relevant NHS agency), which must be quoted on the private form FP10PCD (or Welsh or Scottish equivalent). Private prescriptions for Schedule 2 or 3 CDs should not be dispensed in community pharmacies if they do not contain this identifier. Private prescribing doctors should be referred to their primary care organisation (e.g. local NHS England team) if they need a private prescription identification number. Whether a drug is a controlled drug can be verified in the British National Formulary (BNF) (Joint Formulary Committee, 2021) drug monograph in the Drug Formularies section. The BNF specifies the MDR schedule, which may differ from formulation to formulation. For example, morphine 10 mg/5 ml oral solution is listed in Schedule 5 (so there are no additional requirements for prescribing controlled drugs), while morphine oral solution 20 mg/ml and morphine tablets 10 mg are listed in Schedule 2. It`s important to remember that individual states can pass laws that change the way they regulate prescribing requirements for different drugs. An example of this is marijuana, which is considered a Schedule I drug at the federal level, while some states allow its medical use and distribution.
Pharmacists and practitioners should be aware of the legislation in their practice to ensure the most appropriate patient care. [1] F. I received a prescription for a Schedule 2 controlled drug (MC). The date was computer-generated, is that acceptable? Yes, prescribers can now issue computer-generated prescriptions for all CDs, including Schedule 2 and 3 CDs; All details except the signature can be generated by computer. Community pharmacies require a private CD account number, which must be used when filing private FP10PCD forms, which is different from the NHS account number used by contractors to submit NHS prescriptions. In England, providers who are required to submit private prescription forms but do not yet have a private CD prescription with code F should contact their local NHS England team. Q. Can I submit a CD outside of the instructions on an FP10MDA prescription without approved wording from the Ministry of Home Affairs for closing days? Schedule 5 CD prescriptions are valid for distribution for 6 months from the relevant date.
Further information on the validity of the recipes can be found here. Incomplete, inaccurate or misspelled prescriptions can cause harm to patients. Paramedics can mitigate these risks by ensuring compliance with regulatory prescribing requirements and best practice recommendations summarized in the NFB. The BNF can also be used to verify the legal status of individual drugs to ensure that a drug that is a controlled drug is not inadvertently prescribed. Duration of treatment: The Department of Health and Social Services (DHSC) has strongly recommended that prescriptions for Schedule 2, 3 and 4 CDs be limited to the amount required for treatment of up to 30 days. Exceptionally, if a prescribing physician believes that a prescription for CD should be issued for an extended period of time, they may do so if there is a real clinical need and there is no unacceptable risk to patient safety. Pharmacists may dispense prescriptions if they order more than 30 days in stock of CDs from lists 2, 3 and 4.
