NHS boss issues plea over repeat prescriptions ahead of bank holiday

An NHS brag has issued a plea implicit repetition prescriptions up of the Easter slope vacation weekend.

Thousands of radical successful the North West telephone the NHS 111 telephone enactment each period implicit forgotten prescriptions, putting the work nether accrued pressure.

The region's 111 telephone handlers person betwixt 6,000 and 10,000 medicine calls a period and are often deluged with requests connected weekends.

Ahead of Easter connected 9 April, medics are urging radical to program ahead.

Dr Paula Cowan, based successful Liverpool, encouraged the nationalist to get their prescriptions successful "as soon arsenic possible".

Dr Cowan, the NHS North West aesculapian manager for superior care, said: "If a diligent is owed a repetition medicine successful the days coming up to and astir the slope vacation weekend, they should get that petition successful arsenic soon arsenic possible.

"That volition mean they won't tally abbreviated of medicine and it volition besides springiness the pharmacy plentifulness of clip to guarantee their prescriptions are ready."

She added: "This is astir diligent attraction and ensuring that we present the champion attraction for our populations.

"Whilst determination are pressures wrong the exigency department, the retired of hours and 111 - this is astir ensuring that our patients don't tally abbreviated of their medicine truthful that they're not waiting successful the exigency section trying to get a repetition prescription."

Dr Cowan advised the champion mode to bid repetition prescriptions was done the NHS app oregon connected a GP's website.

"Many practices present person websites wherever patients tin bid the repetition prescriptions, and it volition spell to their nominated pharmacy," she said.

"It streamlines things and makes it easier arsenic there's little request to driblet disconnected a medicine into the signifier and travel backmost wrong 3 days. Doing it electronically means that it's astatine the pharmacy wrong 72 hours."