£8m cost of Coventry’s unused medicines
Unused prescriptions are costing the NHS in Coventry up to £8m a year.
Figures from NHS Coventry show that up to half of all people do not take their medicines as intended, and about 40 per cent of patients on long-term drug treatment fail to take their medicines well enough to achieve their true benefit.
Patients are being encouraged to think carefully before ticking the box on their repeat prescriptions, to make sure they only order the items they need at that time. Patients can also ask their pharmacist for a Medicines Use Review (MUR) to learn more about the medicines they are taking.
It is hoped this could help to save some of the £8m being wasted each year, which could fund up to 11,250 more cataract operations, 1,250 hip replacements or up to 1,100 coronary bypass operations.
The cost of medicines that aren’t taken is wasted money as these medicines are simply incinerated or buried in landfill sites. Once a medicine is dispensed it cannot be reused by anyone else as we cannot guarantee its effectiveness for the next patient.
A community pharmacist can help by giving you an explanation of how to take your medication, providing non-click loc lids, issuing reminder cards or charts and providing larger print for instructions.
Everyone can play their part in helping to reduce the cost of unused medicines.
Stockpiling medicines is unnecessary and dangerous. If you don’t need an item one month don’t order it. This If you do have unwanted medicines, please return them to your local pharmacist for safe disposal.