Changes in the management of CDs
This guidance on this and the following four pages has been prepared in the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's Practice and Quality Improvement Directorate to help pharmacist in England, Scotland and Wales cope with changes in the management of Controlled Drugs
Internet resources
The version of this guidance available on
the Society’s website
(PDF 200K) concludes
with a list of internet resources, with links to the websites of
the Department of Health, the Scottish
Executive, the Welsh Assembly Government, the National Prescribing
Centre, the
Home Office, the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs and the
British National Formulary. |
 |
A number of changes to the monitoring and inspection, prescribing,
dispensing, record keeping and destruction of Controlled Drugs are being
introduced as part of the ongoing programme of work to implement the
recommendations of the Shipman Inquiry. These are a mixture of legislative
requirements and professional good practice guidance.
The Shipman Inquiry was set up on 31 January 2001 and was chaired by
Dame Janet Smith as an independent public inquiry into the issues arising
from the case of Harold Shipman. The Inquiry’s fourth report was
published on 14 July 2004. It focused on the methods used by Shipman
to divert large quantities of potentially lethal Controlled Drugs and
the reasons it was possible for him to do so for so long without detection.
The Shipman Inquiry concluded that there were shortcomings in the systems
used for the safe management of Controlled Drugs and made a number of
recommendations to improve their management.
The Government response to the Inquiry’s fourth report — “Safer
management of Controlled Drugs”, published in December 2004 — outlined
how some of these recommendations would be taken forward.
Some legislation has already been changed and moreamendments to the Misuse
of Drugs Regulations 2001 come into force on 7 July. Legislative changes
in the inspection and monitoring process around CDs (outlined
in the Health Bill 2005–2006, Bill 69) are expected in Health Act
Regulations in the autumn.
These changes to primary legislation and to the Misuse of Drugs Regulations
2001 will apply to England, Scotland and Wales. However, the arrangements
for meeting the new requirements may differ between the three countries.
(Northern Ireland sets its own regulations as far as the misuse of drugs
is concerned, but is included in the new monitoring and inspection legislation.)
The changes affecting England, Scotland and Wales are set out in four
Tables on p26 and 27. Comments on the Table entries are given in detailed
footnotes to the Tables and in two Panels on p28
(All tables and panels: PDF 90K)
Also included in this feature are articles on who can currently prescribe,
supply and administer Controlled Drugs, on the destruction
of unwanted CDs (p28) and on changes in CD legislation that are yet to come
(p29). A further section provides answers to some frequently
asked questions (p29). |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal