Shepherds the Vets – Repeat prescription policy  

The Veterinary Medicine Regulations

A veterinary surgeon may make a reasonable charge for a written prescription.

A practice can only prescribe POM V medicines for an animal under the care of the prescribing veterinary surgeon and following their clinical assessment of the animals.

The RCVS interpret as “under the care “as  

• The Vet must have been given responsibility for the health of the animal by the owner or owners agent.
• The responsibility must be real not nominal.
• The animal must have been seen immediately before prescription or recently enough or often enough for the veterinary surgeon to have personal knowledge of the animal to make a diagnosis and prescribe.

It is not under his care where there has been no physical examination.

 

Medical Prescriptions

• Dispensed prescriptions, the preferred option is a prescription for 1 month to enable stock management, but can issue up to a maximum of 6 months if requested.
• A written prescription can be given for a maximum of 6 months.
• The maximum prescription for controlled drugs remains at 28 days ( see controlled drugs policy).
• prescription must have appropriate signatures.
• The prescription is animal specific. The animal must have been examined as per Vet’s request, however the period between examinations must never be longer than 6 months.
• A check-up fee should always be charged when the animal is examined.
• The prescription should be in the form of 1-month plus 5 repeats.
• An authentication sticker must be attached to each prescription and the authentication book must be completed at the time the prescription is rai sed.
• The prescription must have appropriate signatures.

 

Flea/Worm Prevention Prescriptions

• Dispensed prescriptions, the preferred option is for 3 months to enable stock management, but can issue up to a maximum of 12 months if requested.
• A written prescription should be given for 12 months.
• The prescription is animal specific. The animal must have been examined within the last 12 months.
• An up to date weight for the animal is required.
• If the animal has changed weight category or the client is requesting a different product then the prescription must be prescribed by a vet.
• A check-up fee must always be charged. One fee may cover multiple animals if limited to flea/worm prevention.
• The prescription should be in the form of 3-months plus 3 repeats.
• An authentication sticker must be attached to each prescription and the authentication book must be completed at the time the prescription is raised.
• The prescription must have appropriate signatures.

 

Prescription Fees

Single Prescriptions

• A prescription for one animal and one drug type.
• The charge for a single prescription is £25

Multiple Prescriptions

• A prescription for more than one animal for the same drug or the same animal with multiple drugs.
• The charge is for a multiple prescription is £35

 

General Information

• Prescriptions should never be sent by post or e mail.
• The format of the prescription is dependent on how the drug is dispensed.
• If a prescription is required for multiple animals and multiple drug two prescription charges are applicable.
• When a request for a repeat prescription is received, the receptionist should check the previous notes to see if the Vet has stated when animal must be examined next. If they have not commented their request on the animal’s records, then the standard rules apply.
• If an appointment is required for a repeat prescription, reception make an appointment as normal.
• If no appointment is required, enter the repeat prescription request into the repeats list in the diary. Inform the customer the prescription has been submitted for approval and if it is approved it will be ready for collection in 24 hours. If the request is not approved, then they will be contacted by telephone to discuss the matter further.
• If the request is declined the Vet should ring the owner immediately to discuss next steps. If there is no reply or it is outside acceptable contact hours e.g. before 8am or after 8pm then the vet writes full clinical notes to clarify the position and adds a message for reception onto the message list and reception will contact the customer.

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