Medication Requests following Hospital Appointment
or Outpatient Appointment
Castle Mead Medical Centre Policy
If medication is required following your Outpatient or PrivateHospital appointment with the consultant please note the following information:
Generally we are unable to change private prescriptions issued by private hospitals and clinics to NHS prescriptions. Sometimes these are for items:
· not available on the NHS
· those items that are being used outside of local NHS guidance
· items that are unlicensed or require specialist monitoring
· or special formulations that only that private healthcare provider can make up and dispense.
We may, at our discretion, sometimes change items that are ongoing repeat medication onto NHS scripts for that specific item or a close NHS alternative .
Sometimes hospitals and other clinics may give you a prescription script either to be dispensed through their own pharmacy or at a community clinic. We strongly advise you NOT to bring these prescriptions to us.
- Firstly, these may be for items that a hospital or other specialist pharmacy can only dispense.
- Secondly, these may be for specialist items that the GPs at our practice do not have expert clinical experience in or the facilities to monitor properly.
It is the responsibility of the hospital (and in line with their policy) to give 14 days supply of the medication where the patient:
- Should commence immediately
- Requires a new medicine or a change of dose of existing medication within 2 weeks of the hospital appointment.
Any medication which falls within the above categories MUST be collected from the hospital pharmacy. This is to ensure the patient receives their treatment on time and to allow time for the consultant(s) to send a typed report to the practice detailing the outcome of the hospital consultation.
If the consultant requires you to continue the medication after the initial supply has run out he will inform the practice via this report.
To request further supply of the medication you must submit a written request or supply the original box to the surgery stating the name, strength and dose of the medication; plus details of the consultant/hospital clinic who issued the initial prescription. The practice will supply further prescriptions as long as we have received the appropriate typed report from the hospital consultant. You must allow 2 working days for your prescription request to be processed.
Medication required on discharge from hospital
If medication is required on discharge from hospital, please note the following information:
It is the responsibility of the hospital and they have agreed to:
- Issue a minimum of 14 days medication
- Issue the complete course, if a course of medication is required eg. Antibiotics or steroid reducing medication
- Prescribe enough drops to cover treatment following ophthalmic procedures
- Some medication can only be supplied by the hospital
- Medicines that are not available outside the hospital eg clinical trial, hospital only or unlicensed drugs
- Medicines for which safe and effective prescribing depends on knowledge or experience unlikely to be possessed by the GP eg chemotherapy or TB treatment
- Medicines for which it has been agreed that the hospital clinician is responsible eg. some drugs for rheumatoid arthritis or psychiatric problems
If your medication falls into one of these categories then you will be asked to contact the hospital for a further supply.
If you are transferred to another department within the hospital:
If your consultant decides to refer you to another department within the hospital and you do not hear anything further regarding this, please direct your queries to the consultant’s secretary at the hospital. The practice secretary will not be able to answer any queries relating to such matters.