News | Medicines safety

News

Coroner flags lack of clarity around expanded role of community pharmacists under Pharmacy First

A coroner has questioned methotrexate guidance after a patient died after developing methotrexate-induced pancytopenia and pneumonia.…

Published: 27 February 2026

News

RPS calls for mandatory 2D barcodes on medicines packs

Since the UK left the EU in 2020, the Falsified Medicines Directive has not applied, meaning manufacturers have not been required to list certain information on medicines packaging.…

Published: 19 February 2026

News

Over-the-counter medicines are being purchased by children as young as 13 years, reveals survey

Overall, more than half of the survey respondents had used over-the-counter medicines in a six-month period.…

Published: 17 February 2026

News

Two-fifths of children have seen weight-loss drugs online despite ban

The results of a survey conducted by the Children’s Commissioner revealed that girls were more likely than boys to see adverts for weight-loss injections online.…

Published: 17 February 2026

News

Health news round-up: medicines in pregnancy, GLP-1s and eating disorders, and new cancer treatments

A weekly summary of important developments in pharmacy and health news that you may have missed.…

Published: 13 February 2026

News

‘Two double decker buses’ worth of illegal erectile dysfunction drugs seized by MHRA

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency seized over 4.4 million doses of unlicensed erectile dysfunction medicines in 2025 alone.…

Published: 13 February 2026

News

Hospitals should identify and prescribe time-critical medicines within 24 hours of emergency admission

NHS England standards also state that support services, including pharmacy, should be available daily for acute receiving areas during extended-day working hours.…

Published: 10 February 2026

News

Coroner raises concern over access to patient records for pharmacists in Wales

A patient died after taking one drug for a chest infection and another for high cholesterol, which were contraindicated.…

Published: 9 February 2026

Opinion

The dark side of the ‘miracle jab’: why eating disorder safety cannot be an afterthought

As the use of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists increases, so must our awareness of patients who have an eating disorder or who are at risk of developing one.…

Published: 9 February 2026

News

Health news round-up: travel warnings, AMR in children, and the latest on medicine supply

A weekly summary of important developments in pharmacy and health news that you may have missed.…

Published: 6 February 2026