Absolutely horrified

Just another update to this ongoing saga. I received a letter from the Chief Pharmacist (from the Pharmacy Head Office) with a list of recommendations made at the pharmacy concerned and that the Pharmacist responsible for the error has to complete a Continuing Professional Development cycle as a result of the incident. This is where the plot thickens because the gentleman from the General Pharmaceutical Council has written to me this week to inform me that the pharmacy has been unable to establish who the offending pharmacist was! Unbelievable! They are withholding information to protect him/her. What about the missing Tramadol? The pharmacist could be addicted (sorry I’m being dramatic I know) and going to different pharmacies and pocketing the odd few because they said he was a locum. I’m not leaving it there, I’ve written to the investigator at the GMC and asked him look into this.....again. A nurse wouldn’t be protected to this extent. And finally the pharmacy hasn’t learned any lessons because 4 weeks ago when picking up a prescription an elderly gentleman was complaining his wife had been given the incorrect medication. He said is was double the prescribed dose and his wife’s GP said if she’d taken one it could have killed her because she’s so ill. I don’t suppose this has been reported.

I’ve never used pharmacy2U Hetty58 sounds a good idea

It’s disgusting , I had similar thing done to me but mine were azathrioprine but my tabs were 6 months out of date, I was given them from a well known high street pharmacy, they had actually got them in from a smaller chemist few miles away as my dosage had been lowered by my GP and they didn’t have any lower dose ones, so that was 2 pharmacy’s not doing the job correctly, mine also were initialled twice, I asked to see the book as apparently they sign in a book too when they order in, I was really angry, and complained there and then and also made official complaint, I did hear from their superiors who did apologise, but since I’ve told several people I’ve heard two more cases of it happening same pharmacy, I always check dates now and would advise others also to do this! So glad you noticed yours grandmajan, hope you feel better soon too

Shocking. but it isn't just pharmacies,Drs too make mistakes
I was given Estrogel instead of ovestin by a Dr i had never seen before,my own Dr was horrified, and said" goodness me that is terrible"
My daughter was given the wrong type of HRT for post menopause instead of pre
Not as serious i know, but a few years ago she was given a double strength tablet,not sure now if it by the Dr or Pharmacy

Respect for how you handled it. Will now go and check mine.

The rare times I return any drugs I’ve only been asked if there are any needles in the bag (which there aren’t) then they would just take it away. It’s interesting to read controlled drugs are being returned without a receipt or signature because as Susie has mentioned in a hospital controlled drugs are signed for by 2 nurses one of which must be a Registered Nurse and everyone counted.

Same happened to me after my mum died SusieB50 I returned a rather large stash of controlled drugs to her dispensing pharmacy and wasn’t asked to sign anything at all. They didn’t even check them off, just took the carrier bag from me.

After DH died I was left with a multitude of tablets including some very toxic and dangerous cancer drugs. I took everything back to our normal pharmacy but they would not accept the cancer ones. I had to return them to the hospital. Didn't know I was supposed to get a receipt for them.

I too was amazed that after DH died I had many drugs in the house including morphine ampules that had been so carefully monitored by the nurses administering it checking and double checking the amount every time they came that were then just left in my care. In the end I took it all to the pharmacy where no checks were made, I never thought to ask for a receipt. I could of just sold the lot if I was so minded. Very shocking.

Never not ever predictive text again sorry

I’ve. Ever been very keen on Boots . I use an independent chemist and they have been fine so far

I use Pharmacy2U and everything is delivered. They've never made a mistake!

I was amazed when I returned all the morphine based drugs that my husband was being given before he died . I didn't have to sign anything just handed them to the pharmacist . I am a retired nurse and all controlled drugs had to be signed for by two nurses . I did question it and asked for a receipt , the pharmacist thought I was mad !

Davidhs mine were prescribed correctly. It was the dispenser who made the first error (according to the report I’ve received) but the pharmacist obviously didn’t check and as the lead professional he/she is responsible. I’m a Nurse Prescriber and have never prescribed a drug in error, if I had there would have been serious consequences. I don’t agree that it is a common occurrence because there are systems in place to stop it happening.

Unfortunately medications are misprescribed commonly, they are subject to human error and that will continue. The patient and their carers have to be vigilant and double check, my wife had several occasions when it happened

Unless you have a huge number of meds always check what's in those white paper bags before leaving the pharmacy!

Oh goodness - That sounds awful. Well done for insisting it was correctly reported

welbeck I am considering using another pharmacy. The one I use is near where I live so it’s easy to walk to. I’ve just ordered some more medication so I’ll be checking everything is correct before I leave the pharmacy. At least I can check, my concern is if someone elderly, partially sighted or blind received the wrong medication. You’re right about Boots though. I’ve read about the errors. I know everyone is busy and accidents and errors do happen but 2 people were supposed to check my medication, I just think the pharmacist was rushed and trusted the dispenser to get it right.

can you go to a different pharmacy, I would.
there was a tv documentary a few yrs ago about cost-cutting and subsequent increase in dispensing errors at boots, since they were taken over by an American conglomerate.
there many serious errors, basically it was imposs for the pharmacists to do the amount of work expected.
it was quite worrying. a sign of things to come with more off the nhs being salami-sliced sold off to American big business. where profit is king, patients suffer.

Just an update following me receiving the incorrect medication. Just before Christmas I received a phone call from the gentleman from the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPC) investigating the error. He discussed with me the sequence of events ie when I noticed the error etc. He said the Pharmacy were reluctant to tell him who the pharmacist was which is absolutely disgraceful however because I had sent him a photo of the box the initials of the pharmacist and checker were clearly visible so he knew exactly who they were!! He was going to interview them last month. Today I received a letter from the Superintendent Pharmacist for the Pharmacy informing me of their investigation and what they’ve put in place to stop this happening again. To cut a long story short the pharmacist has to complete a Professional Development Cycle and inservice training given to the dispensers along with a meeting to make all staff aware. As it was a Controlled Drug the incident was referred to the NHS Referring System. I will also receive a report from the GPC. Interestingly last Monday after seeing my GP I went to the pharmacy to collect a prescription. A man walked in to collect his wife’s medication. I heard the manager tell him “I know I’m sorry. Head Office rang this morning”. He replied “well it’s not good enough. You gave my wife a tablet that was double her dose. Her doctor said if she’d taken it it could have killed her!” He was elderly so I presume his wife would be. Will they ever learn?

Thank you Jane10. They are going to keep me updated which I’m pleased about.

Excellent. Something is being done. Well done.

Thank you everyone for your very welcome advice and support. I don’t want to keep boring you all but just an update. The pharmacist I spoke to yesterday did put in a report because this morning I had a call from the Superintendent Pharmacist at the pharmacy’s head office ( he must have told me half a dozen times he was a Superintendent) who apologised profusely and wanted to let me know just how seriously they were taking this issue. It was being reported to Clinical Governance & the Pharmaceutical Council among other places. They are obviously going into the Pharmacy to investigate how this could have happened and more importantly what happened to the missing Tramadol. Susan56 I did have a better night thank you and as already been mentioned check you’re receiving the correct medication and dosage and if something isn’t right, report it. Thanks again for listening xx

Well done GrandmaJan.I am pretty horrified at the pharmacists reaction,well done for reporting it.Every pharmacy has to have a pharmacist in charge on any day,they should have their name displayed for customers to see,they have to sign the pharmacy register with their name and number and they should all know where the dispensing error forms are and fill them in.Its not a job for a manager,it’s a job for the responsible pharmacist of the day.The fact the error was a controlled drug should have made the pharmacist take action.Hopefully the fact you have reported it further will make the pharmacy take their responsibility to their patients more seriously.Sorry you had a bad night last night,hope you feel better soon.?

Everyone should check their medication, because mistakes can and do happen, and the surgery/pharmacy need to know. I used to work for a doctor that used to second sign every prescription when it was his day for doing that and I know for a fact that he just signed them and hardly glanced at them. I know that for a fact because I deliberately dispensed some things wrongly to see if he noticed [obviously didn't give them to the patient, though...].