Repeat Prescriptions

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Send Your Prescription Direct to Pharmacy

New electronic prescribing service (EPS) is replacing the need for most paper prescriptions, you can send your prescription electronically from your doctor’s surgery to your chosen pharmacy.

What Does this Mean for you?

• If you collect your repeat prescription from your GP you will not have to visit your GP practice to pick up your prescription. Instead, your GP will send it electronically to the place you choose, saving you time.

• You will have more choice about where you get your medicines from because they can be collected from a pharmacy near to where you live, work or shop.

• You may not have a to wait as long at the pharmacy as there will be time for your repeat prescriptions to be ready before you arrive.

How Do you Arrange for Your Prescription to go Electronically?

To do this you must nominate a pharmacy or dispensing contractor of your choice. Once you have done this your GP practice can send your prescription electronically.

Ask reception, your pharmacy or dispensing appliance contractor that offers EPS to add your nomination for you. If you are registered on the NHS App you can add your own nominated pharmacy.

You don’t need a computer to use EPS.

Request your prescription in the usual way, giving 48hrs notice then collect from your pharmacy.

Lost Prescriptions

The Practice will not re-issue prescriptions for any medication which:

• has been lost or stolen
• has been taken at a dose greater than prescribed causing the prescription to last less than intended.

This applies regardless of the circumstances and situation.

Sharing Medication

The Practice does not permit medication to be taken by anyone other than the patient to whom it was prescribed. Sharing, borrowing, etc. is strictly not permitted.

Requesting repeat medication which is not for your personal use is fraud and may be reported to NHS Counter Fraud Authority.

Possession of a Controlled Drug without a valid prescription is a criminal offence.

Fit to Fly Medication

Use of Benzodiazepines (and related medications) for flying

People often come to us requesting the doctor or nurse to prescribe diazepam for fear of flying or assist with sleep during flights. Diazepam is a sedative, which means it makes you sleepy and more relaxed. There are a number of very good reasons why prescribing this drug is not recommended.

According to the prescribing guidelines doctors follow (British National Formulary) diazepam is not allowed for treating phobias (fears). It also states that “the use of benzodiazepines to treat short-term ‘mild’ anxiety is inappropriate.” Your doctor would be taking a significant legal risk by prescribing against these guidelines. They are only licensed short term for a crisis in generalised anxiety. If this is the case, you should be getting proper care and support for your mental health and not going on a flight. Fear of flying in isolation is not a generalised anxiety disorder.

Although plane emergencies are a rare occurrence there are concerns about reduced awareness and reaction times for patients taking Diazepam which could pose a significant risk to themselves and others due to not being able to react in a manner which could save their life in the event of an emergency on board necessitating evacuation.

 The use of such sedative drugs can make you fall asleep, however when you do sleep it is an unnatural non-REM sleep. This means you won’t move around as much as during natural sleep. This can cause you to be at an increased risk of developing a blood clot (Deep Vein Thrombosis – DVT) in the leg or even the lungs. Blood clots are very dangerous and can even prove fatal. This risk is even greater if your flight is greater than 4 hours, the amount of time which has been shown to increase the risk of developing DVT whether in an aeroplane or elsewhere.

Whilst most people find Diazepam sedating, a small number have paradoxical agitation and aggression. They can also cause disinhibition and lead you to behave in a way that you would not normally which can pose a risk on the plane. This could impact on your safety as well as that of other passengers and could also get you into trouble with the law. A similar effect can be seen with alcohol, which has led to people being removed from flights.

Diazepam and similar controlled drugs are illegal in a number of countries. They may be confiscated or you may find yourself in trouble with the police. The passenger may also need to use a different strategy for the homeward bound journey and/or other legs of the journey

It is important to declare all medical conditions and medications you take to your travel insurer. If not, there is a risk of nullifying any insurance policy you may have.

Given the above we will no longer be providing Diazepam or similar drugs for flight anxiety and instead suggest the below aviation industry recommended flight anxiety courses.

Flight anxiety does not come under the remit of General Medical Services as defined in the GP contract and so we are not obliged to prescribe for this.  Patients who still wish to take benzodiazepines for flight anxiety are advised to consult with a private GP.

For further information:

https://www.fearlessflyer.easyjet.com/

https://www.britishairways.com/en-gb/information/travel-assistance/flying-with-confidence

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