Patient safety

Whole-pack dispensing of sodium valproate made mandatory following consultation 

The legislation will help address concerns around women taking sodium valproate, who may be unaware of the risks posed to their unborn child if they fall pregnant.…

Pharmacists on high-risk clinical wards reduce prescribing errors, evidence review finds

Researchers used data from 19 studies to identify the most common factors that increase the chance of prescribing errors.…

Repeated use of antibiotics increases inflammatory bowel disease risk, study suggests

Patients aged 40 to 60 years who had been prescribed antibiotics showed the highest risk for inflammatory bowel disease.…

Patient safety alert issued as hospital pharmacists report oxygen cylinder shortages

The National Patient Safety Alert states that "there is a need to conserve oxygen cylinder use to ensure a robust supply chain process".…

We audited our vancomycin patients, with some surprising results

When an audit of 25 patients found that none were given vancomycin in accordance with trust guidelines, Uwaise Rehman and colleagues uncovered a number of reasons why.…

Quarter of hospitalised patients taking clozapine admitted with infection, study finds

Researchers found 25% of patients hospitalised while taking clozapine had an infection, and highlighted that safety protocols around the drug tend to focus on other side effects.…

Pharmacy negotiators in talks with government to relax opening hours as contractors face ‘critical situation’

In a statement, the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee said some pharmacies had already been forced to stop taking patient phone calls and end medicines delivery services because of financial pressures.…

Scottish epilepsy medicines registry to deliver data by end of 2022

The Scottish government also said it was in talks with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency to share its epilepsy data.…

‘Serious risk to patient health’ prompts urgent recall of teicoplanin powder

Two batches of 200mg teicoplanin powder have been recalled, with pharmacists advised to contact patients who were issued them.…

Errors and the inappropriate use of medicines in UK care homes

Medication errors can have serious consequences for the residents of care homes, who are often older and in poor health. This systematic review investigates how common medication errors are in this setting.…