Repeat Prescriptions

Repeat prescriptions are for regular, long term medications. 

The Practice do not accept prescription requests via the telephone. 

Patients may order their repeat prescriptions by:

• Email: prescriptions.kingswood1@nhs.net
• Delivering the counterfoil to the surgery in the prescription box allocated on the right hand side outside the front door. 
• Posting
• Online using this link  SystemOnline - please ask reception staff if you do not have online access
• Request via your local pharmacy
• Through the NHS App
• Ordering repeat prescriptions with NHS App info

Please allow a full 48 hours/2 working days from the time we receive your request for your prescription to be processed. If you have nominated a chemist this will be sent to them automatically.

Please request your medication at least 5 days before you are due to run out. If you request your medication after midday, please allow another working day before collecting your prescription from the pharmacy. 

Please do not request paracetamol on prescription if you don't normally have it.

Did you know you can manage repeat prescriptions from your GP surgery in the NHS App?

You can easily choose where your prescriptions are sent. So, if you know you'll be away from home or you are moving home, you can change your nominated pharmacy from within the app.

You can also order your prescription at any time that suits you. There’s no need to wait to join a telephone queue or wait until the GP surgery opens.

It’s easy to use, and, if you hit a snag, you can go to ‘Help’ in the top right-hand corner of the app or visit nhs.uk/helpmeapp.

Find out more about the NHS App at: www.nhs.uk/nhsapp

Electronic Prescribing

We insist you can now nominate any pharmacy for your prescriptions to be sent to electronically instead of having to collect your prescription from your GP (once ordered). 

Run out or just about to run out of medication requests

Unfortunately a small minority of patients are repeatedly running out (or just about to run out) of their medication. ‘Urgent’ requests of this nature cause a great deal of disruption to the smooth running of the practice. Please be aware that such requests will be questioned very carefully by the reception staff and may well be refused by the doctor. These will be submitted to the Doctor who may only issue a 7 day supply of urgently needed medication. A record is kept of such requests. Medication that is not clinical urgent may still be subject to the 48 hours waiting period.

If you forget to request a repeat prescription

If you forget to obtain a prescription for repeat medication and thus run out of important medicines, you may be able to get help from your Pharmacy. Under the Urgent Provision of Repeat Medication Service, Pharmacists may be able to supply you with a further cycle of a previously repeated medicine, without having to get a prescription from your GP. 

If you have run out of important medication, telephone your usual Pharmacy to check that they offer this service; if they don’t, they may either direct you to another Pharmacy who does provide it, or ask you to phone 111 where you can request details of a local Pharmacy that provides the service.

You must then take with you to the relevant Pharmacy, proof of both your identification and of your medication (for example, your repeat prescription list or the empty box which should have your details printed on it). Please note that controlled drugs and antibiotics are not provided through this service, you will need to ring 111 for these.

If you receive stoma products from your Pharmacy or other supplier and/or receive items such as continence products, please ensure you have sufficient supplies as you may encounter difficulties in obtaining these over Bank Holidays, or when the Surgery is closed.

Changes to Medication

The Occasionally a Consultant at the hospital may make alterations to your medication. When it comes to your next repeat prescription request you may find that the Surgery has not yet been updated with your new dosages/medication. Please ensure that if you are given any paperwork such as letters or carbon duplicates of prescriptions given at the hospital that these are brought to the Surgery as early as soon as possible. This will allow us to update your record and prevent any delays with your next prescription.

Medication Reviews

Patients on repeat medication will be asked to see a doctor, nurse practitioner or practice nurse at least once a year to review these regular medications and notification should appear on your repeat slip. This is to help identify any medication on your record that you may no longer taking and to also ensure that the medication you are taking is suitable at that time and is in accordance with current Health Authority policies. Please be reassured that this will not affect your treatment.

Please ensure that you book an appropriate appointment to avoid unnecessary delays to further prescriptions. It is the clinicians legal responsibility to ensure that patients medication is reviewed. Should patients continue to ignore requests by the Practice for medication reviews then shorter duration prescriptions may be enforced.

Prescriptions Charges and Exemptions

Extensive exemption and remission arrangements protect those likely to have difficulty in paying charges (NHS prescription and dental charges, optical and hospital travel costs).

The NHS prescription charge is a flat-rate amount which successive Governments have thought it reasonable to charge for those who can afford to pay for their medicines.  Prescription prepayment certificates (PPCs) offer real savings for people who need extensive medication.

Useful info for parents/guardian: 

Using solid oral dosage form antibiotics in children

Non-Repeat items 

Non-repeat prescriptions, known as ‘acute’ prescriptions are medicines that have been issued by the Doctor but not added to your repeat prescription records. This is normally a new medication issued for a trial period, and may require a review visit with your Doctor prior to the medication being added onto your repeat prescription records.

Some medications are recorded as acute as they require to be closely monitored by the Doctor. Examples include many anti-depressants, drugs of potential abuse or where the prescribing is subject to legal or clinical restrictions or special criteria. If this is the case with your medicine, you may not always be issued with a repeat prescription until you have consulted with your Doctor again.

Hospital and Community Requests

When you are discharged from Hospital you should normally receive two weeks supply of medication.

On receipt of your discharge medication, which will be issued to you by the Hospital, please contact the Surgery to provide them with this information before your supply of medication has run out.

Hospital requests for change of medication will be checked by a prescribing clinician first, and if necessary a prescribing clinician will provide you with a prescription on request. 

Medicine Wastage  

Unused prescription medicines cost the NHS across the UK over £300million every year. There are a number of different ways that you can help to reduce the issue of wasted medicines and save money for your local NHS.

Only order the medicines that you need

• Please let your GP or Pharmacist know if you've stopped taking any of your medicines
• Check what medicines you have at home before re-ordering
• Discuss your medication with your GP or Pharmacist on a regular basis
• Think carefully before ticking all the boxes on your repeat prescription forms and only tick those you really need
• If you don't need the medicine please don't order it! If you need the medicine in the future you can still request it
• If you need to go into hospital, please remember to take all of your medicines with you in a clearly marked bag
• Please also remember that your medicines are prescribed only for you; it is NOT safe to share them with anyone else

Remember that unused medicines cannot be recycled

• Even if you never open them, once the medicines have left the Pharmacy, they cannot be recycled or used by anyone else
• Please bring your unused medicines to the Pharmacy for safe disposal
• NEVER dispose of your unused or unwanted medicines down the toilet

Unused medicines are a safety risk

• Return out of date medicines to your pharmacy or dispensary for safe disposal
• If your medicines change - return your old medicines to the pharmacy for safe disposal to avoid mixing them up with your new medicines
• Don't stockpile medication - it is a safety risk for children and others who might have them
• Store medicines in an appropriate place out of the reach of children

Prescribing for patients traveling abroad 

(Guidance from Medicine Optimisation Team - Mid and South Essex)

Prescribing ‘just in case’ travel medication

Prescriptions for medication which is requested solely in anticipation of an ailment whilst outside of the UK, but for which treatment is not required at the time of prescribing is not prescribed on the NHS. This includes items to treat ailments such as travel sickness, jet lag, or diarrhoea. It also includes postponement of menstruation whilst abroad. These remedies can be either purchased over-the-counter; or if prescription only they should be treated as a private service and the practice may charge for the provision of a private prescription.

Prescribing medication for existing long-term conditions whilst patient is abroad

• Patients travelling abroad should normally be prescribed 28 days medication only for the treatment of existing long-term conditions. At the discretion of the GP, this may be increased to 56 days or 84 days in exceptional circumstances.

• Patients travelling abroad for more than three months should be a given sufficient quantity to enable them to get to their destination and arrange an alternative supply.

• Prescribers are clinically and legally responsible for any results of a decision to prescribe. Patients going abroad for extended periods are not able to be monitored and so it is not considered good clinical practice to prescribe large amounts of repeat medication. Instead the practice will provide the patient with a current list of their medicines and a summary of the patient’s relevant medical history.

• NHS prescriptions must not be obtained by relatives or friends on behalf of patients who are currently abroad.