Manual Pharmacy (9012134) - Improvement action plan

Regarding the prescribing service: there is sometimes a lack of independent verification of medical history and lack of monitoring in place before initial or repeat supplies of medication are made.
The pharmacy and the prescribing service does not always have the person’s consent to share prescribing information with the person’s doctor

- We will embed requests for GP information and consent in the patient journey for all Weight Loss patients with an active task request in the patient account.

- Where GP information and consent is not initially provided, we will present a reminder again setting out the benefits of GP information sharing, and the particular risks associated with not sharing information with the regular prescriber.

- Where GP information and consent is not initially provided, we will send out regular reminder requests repeating patient warning information and re-stating the benefits associated with GP information sharing. This information
will also be included where patients are taking an active step to renew or amend a Treatment Plan.

- Where GP information and consent is not initially provided, Clinicians will actively promote providing GP information and consent during consultations and highlight the benefits of doing so.

- We have implemented an updated Risk Assessment regarding prescribing Weight Loss medication where consent for GP information sharing has been declined or is not yet available.

- We have provided our Clinical Team with additional training and support to highlight the importance of ensuring all mandatory weight requests and photo verifications set out in our Weight Loss Service Outline are complied with within the prescribed period. Compliance with this protocol will be audited as part of our regular clinical audit program.

- We have drafted and implemented a new Weight Loss Restart SOP that requires a new weight reading and new full length photos (or a video consultation) to verify patient information before any new prescription for patients that are restarting their Weight Loss treatment after even a short break.

- We will explore improvements to our process for collecting patient GP information and scope for implementation of “GP Lookup” software that will allow patients to find and select their regular prescriber from a list (avoiding errors resulting from incorrect contact details).

- We have amended our Weight Loss Service Outline to require additional weight readings and photo verification after six months of treatment (and more frequently for patients with BMIs approaching treatment cessation point.