First repeat prescribing guidance in 20 years urges GPs to review processes

GPs have been urged to review their repeat prescribing processes in the first guidance to be published in 20 years.

The RCGP and the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (RPS) have together produced a new ‘practical toolkit’ for repeat prescribing systems in practices in England.

Published today, the NHS England-commissioned guidance aims to efficiency for GP practices but also patient safety, for example by identifying oversupply of high-risk medication.

With over one billion prescriptions dispensed annually, 77% of which are repeat prescriptions, the need for efficiency and safety ‘is paramount’, the organisations stressed.

Repeat prescriptions also account for nearly 80% of NHS medicine costs for primary care, and the ‘significant’ workload for GP practices related to this ‘necessitates streamlining and improvement’, they added.

The toolkit, which was commissioned by NHS England, takes the form of a ‘self-assessment process’, to help practices and PCNs to assess their local arrangements.

The guidance recommends practices undertake a full ‘process-mapping exercise’ of their repeat prescribing system, with input from the local patient participation group and community pharmacies.

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Source: Pulse, 8 October 2024