Medicines Management
Issue no 5, p4
September/October 2002

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First time prescriptions are too generous

Over-prescribing medication (PDF 50K) to patients when starting them on a new treatment regimen has been blamed for a significant proportion of drug wastage by the authors of a new study (IJPP 2002:10 (suppl):R42).

They found a total of 298 items were returned to eight community pharmacies and 42 items to five general practices in Birmingham in one month.

About two-thirds of the items returned had been prescribed in quantities of one month or more, and just over half had been returned as a result of a change or stopping of treatment.