Contraceptive agents

Women cannot control fertility through contraception alone, says British Pregnancy Advisory Service

More than half of women who had an abortion in 2016 were using at least one form of contraception when they presented, according to data gathered by the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS).…

Superdrug reduces price of morning-after pill by nearly half

Superdrug has cut the price of the morning-after pill to £13.49, almost half the average charged in pharmacies across the UK.…

Protect the ‘Three Girls’ in your pharmacy

BBC docudrama on the Rochdale grooming scandal highlights the need for safe spaces for vulnerable girls in the community, and pharmacy can provide one.…

Wild plant compounds could act as male contraceptive, researchers find

Two compounds normally found in wild plants have the potential to act as a male contraceptive, according to the results of research published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.…

Common oral contraceptive pill has negative effect on general well-being

An estimated 100 million women use the contraceptive pill, but surprisingly little is known about its effect on overall health.…

Contraceptive pill does not increase long-term cancer risk

Most women who take the contraceptive pill are not at increased risk of cancer overall and may actually gain some protection against certain cancers, researchers say.…

Pharmacists urged to explain potential effect of body weight on emergency contraception

The Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare (FSRH) has urged pharmacists and doctors to explain to patients that the emergency contraceptive pill can be ineffective in women weighing 11 stone or more, or with a body-mass index of 26 or above.…

GPhC consultation on religious beliefs generates record number of responses

Proposals that would prevent a pharmacist from referring a patient elsewhere on the grounds that their personal religious beliefs prevented them from providing the necessary care have triggered a record number of responses, the General Pharmaceutical Council says.…

Increasing refusal to supply EHC would be beneficial

I have recently retired from practice but if I were still practising in community pharmacy today, I would have to decide whether to look for a new sector of practice or wait until I was ousted from my post because I have a moral objection to supplying emergency hormonal contraception (EHC). Th…

RPS issues updated guidance on emergency contraception

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society has updated its own guidance on emergency contraception, in response to new Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Healthcare guidelines on prescribing of emergency contraception.…