The Pharmaceutical Journal
Vol 274 No 7335 p156
5 February 2005

Society summary

An occasional feature, prepared in the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s Professional Standards Directorate, to highlight problems and inquiries currently being handled

Law and Ethics Bulletin, 2001 to present
See also Good Practice Points, 2003 to present

Endorsement of prescriptions

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s Fitness to Practise and Legal Affairs Directorate reminds pharmacists of the need for accuracy in the endorsement of NHS prescription forms.

Quantity dispensed Pharmacists must ensure that prescription endorsements do not misrepresent the quantity of medicine, appliance or chemical reagent supplied. In certain circumstances, as defined in the Drug Tariff, a pharmacist may supply a quantity different from that requested on the prescription — for example, where a medicine is supplied in a special container or calendar pack. A pharmacist who supplies less than the quantity requested by the practitioner must endorse the prescription with the exact quantity supplied. In any circumstances other than those specified in the Drug Tariff, a pharmacist is required to supply the exact quantity ordered by the practitioner.

Pack size Pharmacists are also advised to ensure that all pack size endorsements are correctly made. Caution should be exercised when using automatic prescription endorsing systems. On occasion they may make incorrect endorsements — for example, by defaulting to the smallest pack size available when a larger pack size was used. If this would result in over-reimbursement of the cost of the product supplied, a complaint of fraud could be made against the pharmacist concerned.

Patient declaration Finally, pharmacists are reminded to check that the declaration on the back of the prescription form has been filled in correctly. Where a patient (or his or her representative) declares an exemption from prescription charges, the pharmacist is required to check for evidence of this.

The Society does not encourage pharmacists to sign the declaration on behalf of a patient unless fully satisfied as to the patient’s identity and exemption status. A false declaration made by the pharmacist, whether knowingly or as a result of failure to check a patient’s exemption, may constitute a criminal offence and/or be considered as professional misconduct.