The Pharmaceutical Journal Vol 266 No 7154 p888-891
June 30, 2001

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Veterinary medicines

The safest protocol must prevail

From Mr B. G. Spencer, MRPharmS

Professor Sir John Marsh’s review and report (PJ, May 26. p700) has much to recommend it in addition to the points raised in the letter by David Evans (PJ, June 9, p786). The prospect of closer co-operation between the veterinarian and the pharmacist at practice level has everything to commend it, and should result in a much improved service via owners to the ultimate client — the animal.

The review appeared to be a well balanced and thoughtful response to a fairly complex and ticklish set of criteria set by our political masters. Having now got the general election out of the way, and a completely new broom in charge of a ministry that has effectively been moved sideways, it is to be hoped that the report will not be shelved but will be acted upon swiftly, so as not to lose impetus. Some of the recommendations are long overdue; others will not improve with keeping.

It would appear that by sleight of hand, the replacement of PML products by categorising them as a subdivision of POM, and the prospect of further subdivision of POM to create other POMs for sale or supply via specialist outlets, will have taken our categorisation of animal medicines into the continental POM/GSL two tier system fairly painlessly.

Mr Evans is quite right to expect that pharmacy should not be penalised by having imposed a more onerous verification protocol than other sellers. However, as pharmacists we should insist that the protocol that is safest for the public and its animals should be the one that prevails. Half-baked, retrospective authorisation of a sale is of little use if a faulty product needs to be recalled, and recall would be rather difficult if an animal has already been dosed with a possibly hazardous product.

Brian Spencer
Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands

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