Ordering medication

My husband is registered with a local pharmacy which is part of the Well group. The GP doesn't seem to appreciate that although the pharmacy has a local branch, the prescriptions are dispensed centrally and sent out by post, taking anything up to 1-2 weeks to be delivered. The surgery refuses to sign off the prescription any earlier than a few days before the next lot of medication is due to begin, causing him no end of problems. We went away on holiday in January and my husband put in his request with a note saying he was going away for nearly 3 weeks on such a date and please can he have the prescription early? Of course the inevitable happened - the surgery refused to sign off the

Oops tried to insert a blank line and it was sent!
the surgery refused to sign of the prescription any earlier than 2 days before the weekend we were due to go on holiday, which meant the prescription didn't arrive in time and he ran out of medication before the end of the holiday. A formal complaint was made but I don't know if it will make any difference.

I'm on a life time medication and pharmacy dispenses everty 2 months. I collect but if I wasn't able to do they would deliver. I'm in rural area, and in the town there are pharmacies that have a collect your prescription machines. GP sends prescription that you request to your choice of pharmacy. Pharmacy sends code when ready. You use machine like a cash machine. Again if you are unable to collect they will deliver. Really excellent service.

That's awful and shows a total lack of understanding and care towards older patients. Disgraceful.
Is there any other way to receive your medication, another pharmacist in the area ? Ask around.

I order via NHS app then pick up at my local pharmacy. If I need them early for holiday etc there’s space to write a note to GP explaining. Never a problem and my pharmacy are super efficient and helpful

Same as TwiceasNice

My brother has severe mobility issues and due to a stroke cannot talk on the phone.
Up until a few weeks ago, I would phone the pharmacy and they would simply dispense either the next day o the one after if I called pm. They changed it without telling anyone.
Now, no phone ordering at all. Either visit the GP with the form, or do it online. (I am 200 miles away).
Having worked it out, it now takes 4 days, 2 for the GP and 2 for the pharmacy, but if I dare to order 5 days in advance, they simply cancel the order!

When in the UK , I had to ask for a prescription every month. When I moved to BC Canada I found the system easier all-round. My GP issues a 6 month prescription, the Pharmacist gives me 3 months supply, then I return to the pharmacy for a 3 month refill. That's 2 prescription charges. If I were to run out of tablets, the Pharmicist can supply tablets until I get a new prescription.

but if I dare to order 5 days in advance, they simply cancel the order!
Similar here - I need to order exactly 1 week before, neither a day before nor a day after! It is engraved in my diary .......

Incredible, absolutely appalling. Treating patients like this. We pay for the NHS, it’s not free. The people who work in it are paid. No one is doing us a favour. How dare they treat patients like this? My surgery issues (most) regular prescriptions 8 weekly. Order online and sent to pharmacy of your choice. Has anyone tried contacting their local Integrated Card Board or Health Watch to complain if they’re not happy with the way their prescriptions are handled?

Seems the system runs for the staff and not the patients.

CocoPops

Seems the system runs for the staff and not the patients.

Spot on - there’s far too much of a culture of expecting us to be grateful. GP practices and pharmacies are independent private businesses receiving public money ie our money They should remember that.

I hope you like this. A long time ago when my late father was 63, he was in a lot of pain when walking. I said, " Dad, you need a hip replacement". We went to the village GP.
GP invited my Dad to sit down.
Dad "No need. This won't take long Dr. My daughter says I need a new hip and Mr. P is the best man for the job" .
GP " I can write a letter of referral for you Mr. Coco".
Dad "No need . Please phone him and arrange a date"
GP "I can't do that, he might be operating".
Dad "Please call his secretary now."
GP Open mouthed calls the secretary.
Dad " "Let me talk to her " and takes the phone.
5 mins later Dad says, "Thank -you very much Miss ? Ward 10 2pm next Tuesday and the op the following day."
We leave and Dad says to dumbfounded GP " No need to wrrite that letter now Dr."
In the car Dad said, "What a daft system. That GP needs to remember where his salary comes from". I still laugh about it now

IMHO health centres seem to have a particular pènchant for employing staff with a 'School Ma'am' attitude........be careful you don't do it again or it'll be the Naughty Step for you.

Just write it off as falling foul of someone with a Captain Mainwaring personality, poor sods.

To every one of us who has experienced or still does, a surgery receptionist who believes she (and yes it usually is a she) can dispense haughty words over an early or late application for medication ... stand up to her, call her out on her attitude, ask if the call is being recorded for training purposes. These people have no understanding of anybody's personal circumstances and no right to do anything except give an NHS service to which we are all entitled. Also ask her the name of the practice manager and the steps to take to become a member of their patient liaison committee. It's enough to be dictated to by a democratically elected politician without having to be judged by a surgery receptionist. Zero tolerance is a two-way street.

Same as .cornishgreenhouse - I can’t fault Pharmacy2u, except perhaps too many reminders. I only take one medication and have no trouble using the NHS app to order from the Surgery. They were ok to approve an early repeat
because of a holiday and I’ve got that back on track now.

I’m sorry to read that many people are still experiencing dreadful service at their surgeries. I’ve suspect it’s not that easy to change practices nowadays.

The one week window is the part that catches people out, because the date moves every month. Two things that have worked for other people in the same position. The NHS App shows the date you can order from, so it is worth checking there rather than counting on the calendar. For the reminder itself, a repeating alert set for the same weekday every four weeks is more reliable than a note in the diary; a phone reminder app such as XNeuronal will also read the alert out loud when the day comes, which helps if the phone is in another room, and it can keep a photo of the repeat slip so the names are to hand when you phone. And if the practice keeps moving the goalposts, ask them in writing what the exact window is and keep the reply. The dementia point is a fair one; that is exactly the patient who ends up without tablets.

Our surgery is hopeless. A repeat prescription takes 7 working days to dispense so if there’s a weekend in between it can be even longer. They also have this system where you can collect it from a huge locker type system outside the pharmacy and outside a village hall. Dare not even try that!