anyone know about prescriptions

[cambourne7]

some gps will give you a private prescription for stuff that is only available on prescription but cheaper to buy then the prescription charge, mine does that

I like it when doctors do that but sometimes independant chemists will tell you and cross the item out so you can buy it cheaper.

Well one of the things i have on my perscription is a cream i use as a soap. I can buy it over the counter but i get a perscription for 1500g of it which l have the doc specify in the perscription how its dispenced something like 1x500g 6x100g 6x50g 2x25g which means i always have some with me either in a hand bag or something that i can put in a case if i am away.

[cambourne7]

[debster]

yes cam most chemists will do that for non prescription items but if an item is not available off of prescription then a private one gets you the iem at cost

[calamityjayneuk]

Hi Manicscousers

I used to work for the prescription pricing authority so I have the answer! It was a while ago, but it's unlikely the rules have changed that much.

If you take your prescription to the chemist the chemist gets paid for the drug dispensed and a dispensing fee. If your surgery has their own dispensary then they will get paid as the chemist would, but I think the fees are different. In any case they still get paid per item, not per piece of paper so they wouldn't get more cash by putting on three different scripts.

When a chemist gives out slightly less, or different size tubes or packets than prescribed it's usually because the size of the pack the dr has chosen doesn't match what's in stock.

We used to have huge folders full of rules about what the chemist should dispense depending on what packs were available and what had been ordered - all to do with saving money and not splitting packs up unnecessarily, or some pack sizes being cheaper than others.

Not to mention all the rules about non branded drugs that are cheaper and the government insisted on being used instead. When the chemist gives you a cheaper version, it's not a scam, it's the government rules, sometimes they would not pay for the dearer option so the chemist would lose out if they gave it to you.

Most boring job I ever had by the way - I could send people to sleep talking about it  ;D

[valmarg]

jawdroppingly amazed - and envious - VM...in fact I clicked on your profile before I typed this to see if you were anywhere near me :'(  Are you also served by good NHS dental practices btw? (go on, ruin my night & tell me you are ;) ;D)

You can't have everything A_M.  A good NHS dentist is not one of them.  OH and I have been seing one up Leek for at least the past ten years, and he is crap.  In fact have given him the sack.  Having been referred to a hospital by my GP, and found out just what rubbish he is.  When I started seeing him I had 28 teeth, now I have about 17.  False teeth are not an option. ;D ;D ;D

Going back to the GP service we receive, we consider ourselves extremely fortunate, especially considering some of the horror stories you hear.

valmarg

[powerspade]

You should all move to us in wales we get free prescriptions for everyone no matter what age you are.

[valmarg]

powerspade, you may have just touched on a raw nerve.

By funding welsh and scottish health benefits England is not a good place to be growing old, and I can speak from experience.

valmarg

[cambourne7]

I have a good NHS dentist (they opened the day i started work in cambridge and they were accross the road next to the sandwhich shop so i popped in and signed up when i got lunch there was no que as they had not advertised they were opening the next week there was a que down the road.

I have a fantastic NHS doc he diagnosed me with a condition i had be misdiagnosed with for 10 years. Hes amazing and has gone beyond the call in the village even having people bringing kid in when there closed and having ambulences standing bye to take them to hospital. And would regularly call me to check i was ok when i was off with stress.

[Larkshall]

Hi Louise,
You seem to be well catered for in the new town.

Our surgery has it's own pharmacy and as said previously, when you leave the consulting room the prescription is usually ready within minutes.

We can order repeat prescriptions online and also book appointments. Today I needed to see a doctor, went online to see what times were available. None for my own doctor but I managed to book an appointment with a partner in another village. They are all computerised now so my records were available to him anyway.

This is modern technology being used as it should be.

[cambourne7]

yes its getting better here, although my dentist is in cambridge near staples. The dentist in the village is private and i cant afford them so i stayed with my nhs dentist and drive in ;)

Nice to be able to walk a couple of yard to the pub and know your neighbours and generaly get on with people. Nothing like living in london which i hated and nothing like your cute little road ;)

Hope your feeling ok :) i will be over with your rhubarb on thursday as the allotments a little water logged if your not in i will leave it in a bag on the door  ;D

[Paulines7]

Like Valmarg, we have a good appointments system at our local GP surgery (Health Centre).  If you want to make an appointment with a particular doctor then the wait could be up to 2 weeks but if you ring at 8am, you will be given an appointment for that day but not necessarily with your own GP as it depends who is available.  They also operate a good telephone system.  They take your number and give a time when the doctor will ring to discuss any particular problem or test results etc.

I have been fortunate in my choice of dentists.  When I was 16, I registered with one in Sidcup, Kent, recommended by a colleague at work.  I stuck with this dentist for many years and would go back there for check-ups and treatments wherever I was living.  These places were Tonbridge, Kent, Frome in Somerset and for almost 5 years, Oban in Scotland and the New Forest. 

If there was treatment to be done after a check up, he would always try to do it at the time or fit it in within a few days, knowing how far I had travelled.  My parents lived in Kent so it was a combined visit.

When the Sidcup dentist retired, I had to find another one so went to one in Totton, near to where we were living in the New Forest.  We are still with him even though we moved ten years ago and he is now 25 miles away.  Our son and his family live right near him so again we are able to combine our appointments with visiting family.