Premises regulation

Pharmacy regulator finds record keeping and cleanliness standards often not met

A picture is emerging of the day-to-day practices that are influencing how pharmacies are ranked under the new premises inspection regime introduced by the General Pharmaceutical Council.…

Pharmacy inspection rankings need an overhaul

The GPhC will scrap the satisfactory rating, but its premises inspection model needs more than a relabel.…

Proposals to ‘decriminalise’ dispensing errors may not prevent prosecution for inadvertent mistakes

New proposals seek to end the threat of prosecution for inadvertent dispensing errors but there are concerns that pharmacists will not be fully protected when they make an honest mistake.…

Changes to dispensing errors legislation must strike the right balance

The proposed changes to the laws on dispensing errors are a step in the right direction but more needs to be done to remove the threat of prosecution from pharmacists.…

Pharmacy regulator to review premises ranking system

The General Pharmaceutical Council will scrap the ‘satisfactory’ category from community pharmacy premises inspection rankings after concerns that it may be misinterpreted.…

Pharmacists will no longer face prosecution for honest dispensing errors under UK proposals

Making an inadvertent dispensing error will no longer automatically be considered a criminal prosecution under plans issued by the four health departments across the UK on 12 February 2015.…

Annual renewal fee for pharmacists set to rise by 4.2%

The annual renewal fee for pharmacists to register to practise in the UK could rise by 4.2% from £240 to £250 from October 2015.…

2014: The Pharmaceutical Journal’s news in review

Looking back at some of the biggest news stories from the past year. …

Almost all pharmacies rated satisfactory, with few considered to be good or excellent

More than 90% of the first pharmacies inspected by the General Pharmaceutical Council under its new inspection model were considered satisfactory, while only a handful were rated good and hardly any were judged to be excellent.…