Medicines use review

Claims that leading pharmacy chain conducts unnecessary MURs prompts call for review

Pharmacy organisations are calling for changes to the way medicines use reviews (MURs) are conducted after an investigation by The Guardian claimed that a leading pharmacy chain was performing them unnecessarily to maximise profits.…

Pharmacy e-referral system wins two categories in HSJ awards

A pharmacy e-referral system in Newcastle that links pharmacists in hospital with colleagues in the community has won national recognition and is already being rolled out across the region and to other parts of the country.…

Medicines management project wins Pharmaceutical Care Award 2015

Winning entry demonstrated the benefit of pharmacist input to GPs’ medicines reviews for older people.…

Pharmacist support ‘helps GPs reduce polypharmacy burden’

Medicines reviews performed by pharmacists in general practice help to reduce polypharmacy burden by 20%.…

Advice, rules and regulations for setting up an internet pharmacy

There are 496 distance-selling pharmacy websites currently registered in the UK. What do pharmacists who want to set up their own online pharmacy need to know? …

Unintended consequences of pharmacists working in GP practices

I was most agreeably surprised when watching ‘Breakfast’ on BBC to learn that the Royal College of General Practitioners is recommending that every GP practice should have its own pharmacist. Also it was good to see the interview with a pharmacist working in such a practice. From what th…

MPs publish pharmacy wish list for next UK government

MPs from the All-Party Pharmacy Group have written a wish list of what they want the next UK government to achieve within its first 100 days.…

A new model of pharmacy in North East London

North East London Local Pharmaceutical Committee is recruiting pharmacies to take part in its new ‘SelfCare Pharmacy’ practice. Will its efforts result in a viable new model of pharmacy care?…

Medicines optimisation: more than a buzzword?

The medicines optimisation agenda is finally gathering momentum nearly two years on from a major Royal Pharmaceutical Society report on the concept.…

Missing the point of medicines use reviews

Monty Goldin said that medicines use reviews (MURs) cannot be conducted properly without full access to patient records ( The Pharmaceutical Journal 2014;293:599) He has misunderstood the point of MURs. It is an opportunity to discuss with a patient the purpose of their medicines a…