AIBU to wonder whether people take th NHS for granted?

Does anyone know the cost of producing and dispensing a prescription? I mean the cost on top of the medication.

A couple of years ago there was a consumer programme on TV where they talked a lot about the non-returnable crutches etc. Apparently the cost of cleaning them was too much but after a while they persuaded a couple of hospitals to do it. I would have thought that now we have such huge hospital trusts it would be possible.

Presumably because once passed by the pharmacist they are not stored in secure conditions. It might be possible to find a secure way of storing them but if so then the pharmacist would have to authorise their release, making more delays at the counter.

I agree that we need to be really careful about the safety of medicines that have already been “out there”. But I can’t see any justification at all for made-up prescriptions, still at the pharmacy, being destroyed if not collected within a fortnight.

Rivernana there will be people who could and would find ways to tamper with medicines so that they looked unopened. It isn't too difficult. Injecting substances, contaminating medicines. It may be rare but it is possible. Do you think that poorer people who use food banks etc deserve a lower standard of care than the rest of us? The rules abut binning medicines are there for a reason. It's very similar to the situation in some countries where you can buy over the counter anti-biotics. Their over use has resulted in resistant strains of bacteria. You may have very good intentions but the practicalities and the very real dangers have to be taken into account. Restrictions on medicines and their re-use are there to maintain safety standards.

Trisher we are talking about unused, unopened medicines. Also perhaps a set up like food banks where anything that can be reused is stored for needy charities to visit and claim. Any savings are better than nothing and reduction of waste that helps the needy is surely a good thing as well?

I don't think prescriptions should be used for items that can be bought over the counter relatively cheaply, eg paracetamol and aspirin. Do people necessarily realise that each item is charged at £9.00? Perhaps a high profile campaign would help to educate people and reduce costs.

As for items like crutches, I am not sure whether it is safe or practical for all such items to be returned and re-used.

Maybe things have changed in the NHS in the 14 years since I had my hip replacement but I was certainly told to hand back my crutches when I had no further need of them.
I always refuse to have paracetamol on prescription, since they are 25p for a pqck of 16 in Aldi. I also buy my own Gaviscon Advance, although I can have it on prescription. The pharmacist changed it to a product with the same formula but which didn't taste the same, and didn't feel as viscous.

Interesting posts about crutches etc not being returnable. Several years ago DS was working in Germany and damaged ligaments in his knee. Hospital gave him crutches as part of his treatment, which was evidently not covered by EU health insurance as he was hounded for the cost of the crutches for months - bills in German that we didn't understand how to pay. We eventually had a letter from a UK debt collector who the German authorities had authorised. Didn't mind paying up but we were gobsmacked by the totally different attitude of our lackadaisical NHS

Deedaa, they cost all of 40p in the local shop! I don't think anyone needs prescriptions for those or ibuprofen.

I've always thought it's ridiculous to get free meals in hospital. I understand that it ensures nobody goes without BUT why not a voluntary payment scheme? We've always donated to the hospital but a formal scheme would be welcome.

My mother in law had paracetamol prescribed by the doctor. She was always asking me to go round and get a new prescription because she was running out. When I suggested that I should just pick some up from the supermarket because they only cost pennies she always flatly refused because she got them for nothing from the doctor. When she died I found a cupboard stuffed with boxes of bloody paracetamol. It meant we didn't have to buy any for years.

EllenVannin, I think that the prescription charge has to be averaged out. Some medications cost a lot.
The system works, I suppose to some extent because most of us believe in supporting the system for the general good of the population.

If your medications only cost pennies why don’t you go and buy them at the chemist? Save the time of a dispenser and admin costs.

Great idea. Perhaps start a specific new thread Elegran?

Rivernana We can post anything we find on how to recycle and re-use stuff to Gransnet, too.

Elegran's links are very helpful. This is a great example of how the public can be informed of ways of reducing waste and helping the needy.

My husband had significant back surgery last year and when discharged home he was issued with a walking aid and two commodes. None of which he used but the hospital refused to take them .back, despite several phone calls.
In the end we found a company which does collect NHS aids, cleans them and then returns them to the NHS.
They do free collections too
If we hadn’t been persistent in our desire to return theses reusables they would have no doubt been skipped.
The department which issues these items must do more to ensure that that they are returned to save money and avoid waste

Having owned dogs in the past, no way do I take our NHS for granted!
I'm a huge fan of all our emergency services, plus volunteer organisations such as RNLI, Mountain Rescue etc.

The 3X is probably to dissuade patients from failing to turn up without contacting the receptionist!

I have found some internet sites which may help you pass on your unwanted equipment. There were others. If you try a search for what is possible in your own area, you may find that there is more going on than you thought. These sites seemed to still be current, but it would be best to check.

www.scope.org.uk/advice-and-support/second-hand-disability-equipment/
Within 30 miles of Milton Keynes, covering Dunstable, Northampton, Bedford and Buckingham. Call free on 0800 011 3005.
Within 30 miles of Doncaster, covering Sheffield, Leeds and Wakefield. Call free on 0800 121 4670.

www.hospitalmart.co.uk/ an online listing site for Medical / Hospital Organisations to sell any unwanted, used, preowned, refurbished, redundant, slow moving Hospital / Medical Equipment, or Disposables.The objective of our site is to generate much needed income and reduce costs in what is a difficult financial environment. Point your local hospital in their direction.

www.ed.ac.uk/medicine-vet-medicine/news-events/latest-news/student-run-charity-collects-and-transports-unwant Edinburgh students and alumni are collecting out of date medical equipment and excess supplies and sending them to places worldwide where they are needed most.

Doodledog I opt to go privately for physio and only pay £50 a session. It is a good sized private clinic so not sure why an NHS session should be more than 3x that cost.

I was once prescribed the wrong repeat medication - something I had stopped taking a long time ago, Just as well I looked at it in the chemist and told them, the assistant told me that once the medication has a label on it , it has to be destroyed and can't be used again, what a waste, I'd not even left the chemist counter.

When my mum died the aids she had had for many years were collected by the people who supplied them.
I think this isn't a viable option for the NHS as the cost of checking, storing, transporting and delivering the drugs would be huge. Who would pay ? Any savings would be minimal because of this cost.
Perhaps it would be possible to create a charity which could deal with these things but our NHS shouldn't be responsible.
As for the idea that because drugs have only been out of the chemists for a few hours they are safe to reuse, it only takes a moment to add something toxic.

Same experience as Fiachna50 - I had 3 shower/commode chairs cluttering up my garage a while back that I couldn’t get rid of, they didn’t want them back. Eventually (can’t remember how) I did get the people who bring this stuff to take them but the chap collecting said they’d be dumped and not reused. They were perfectly fine, and barely used, just not suitable for us.

Well, things must have changed. Many years ago I was a carer for a relative. When the person sadly died, eventually we had to clear their home(awful time). My relative was a wheelchair user, so, there was the wheelchair and various types of equipment and the hospital would not take them back. They didn't want the various items! We couldn't give these away!!!In the end I think a charity took them. If this was the attitude then, no wonder they were losing money. It was a shocking waste. This was Scotland, so Im assuming by Paddyann's post thankfully things are different now.

Incredible stories coming in. I have now written to the Health Secretary and copied (by e mail) my local Conservative MP. Totally agree that some medicines can't be reused even if they are unopened/ in date, due to doubts about storage, but what about the amount of medicines returned within hours, sometimes minutes because they have been dispensed in error, or the unused medicines held in controlled conditions in hospitals or Care Homes? Also, as mentioned, overseas aid will certainly accept a lot of mobility equipment, needle exchanges will accept unused syringes, animal charities (like my local Hedgehog Rescue) will gratefully accept dressings and other items, and shelters for the homeless will accept food supplements etc. In terms of managing distribution it could simply be a matter of having a centralised collection point, like food banks, where such organisations can come and collect items they can use from time to time. The list of benefits in reusing whatever possible is endless. Such casual waste is morally wrong. I appreciate that the government is preoccupied with Brexit but life goes on, sick people still need to be treated and savings need to be made wherever possible if we are to keep our NHS healthy and still functioning for generations to come.

I will sign.

Some years ago I broke my left leg and right foot. I was immobile for six weeks. I had a chest-high walking frame and a pair of crutches to help me walk when I was able.

On completion of my recovery, I tried to take these appliances back to the hospital but was told in no uncertain terms that they would not be accepted. Why? 'Infection', was the answer.

These were (I believe) aluminium and could surely have been swabbed down and reused.

The disposability of these crutches was, in my view, completely unacceptable.