Free Medication Training Updates

With the risk that COVID-19 might affect the availability of medicines, NHS England issued new guidance for care homes allowing them to re-use medicines between residents, rather than destroy them or send them back to the pharmacy. The full guidance is here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-reuse-of-medicines-in-a-care-home-or-hospice). This guidance applies...

In January, Boots announced they’ll no longer supply blister packs (or as we pharmacists call them - monitored dosage systems) to care homes: both new and existing ones. Lloyds pharmacy followed by saying they’ll no longer supply blister packs to new care homes and they'll review...

Gabapentin and pregabalin were reclassified as controlled drugs (CDs) back in April 2019, yet many health and social care providers still seem unsure how to treat them. Are they controlled drugs? In short, yes they are controlled drugs but no, they do not need to...

If you find this article useful, sign up for updates when new articles are published (on the left hand side or bottom of the screen for mobiles). Emollients are moisturising creams, ointments, lotions and gels applied to the skin to treat dry skin conditions such as...

Summary NICE guidelines fail to give clear advice on whether room temperatures need monitoring for medicines stored in care homes. We recommend that care homes in England should follow the same advice that applies to pharmacies in England and care homes in Scotland, namely: If it is...

In this update, I will cover which types of medication error need reporting to the CQC and safeguarding, as well as how to investigate and learn from medication errors. If you find this article useful, sign up for updates when new articles are published (on the...

Summary: Following new advice from NICE (March 2017) for community settings [1], all medicines support provided to a person should be recorded on a medicines chart. NICE may apply this to care homes with the next revision of their medicines guidelines. If you find this article...

Recent Court of Protection Ruling on Covert Medication – 6th July 2016 A recent Court of Protection ruling on the administration of covert medication has implications for all care settings. In this training update, John Greene (Lead Trainer, Prescription Training) looks at this Court of Protection ruling, and...

Some manufacturers state that for certain items like creams, oral liquids, eye drops etc. the product must be discarded X days or months after first opening. If this is the case, the manufacturer will print a once-opened/discard-by date on the package. It may also be...