What does the Pharmacy do for you?
What does the Pharmacy do for you?
Patient Information
Pharmacy
- Author ID: GM
- Leaflet Ref: Pharm 001
- Version: 2
- Leaflet title: What does the Pharmacy do for you?
- Date Produced: October 2023
- Expiry Date: October 2025
What do we do for you whilst you are an inpatient?
Our Pharmacy team work exceptionally hard to provide and take care of your medications on your admission to make sure you get the most effective and safe treatment on your stay with us.
Our process
When you are admitted our aim is to see you within 24 hours, to find out what medications you take at home so we can make sure you receive the best treatment and care during your stay.
Our highly trained pharmacy team will ask you a variety of questions e.g.
- Which medications do you take at home?
- Do you have any allergies?
- Do you feel you’re receiving the best from your medicines?
This is to ensure we can deliver an exceptional service to you. We are patient centered and put patients at the heart of everything we do.
Do you understand how to take your medications?
Understanding how to take your medications and the reason for your treatment is very important to us. We strongly believe patients need to be counselled on their medications
correctly to empower you to take your medicine as effectively as possible.
Do you feel that you fully understand your medications? Are you concerned about any side effects? Please don’t hesitate to speak to our pharmacy team during your admission or call our helpline via the contact details on the back of this leaflet. We are always happy to help.
What happens if your medications change during your stay?
During your stay, changes may be made to your medications. We will inform you if so during your admission. We will supply you with any new or changed medications and inform your GP practice about anything that has changed so you have nothing to worry about.
What happens when you are ready to be discharged?
- Your doctor will prepare your prescription and decide what medications you will need for discharge e.g. new items or any changes to existing medication.
- Your prescription will then be processed by pharmacy.
- The pharmacist will clinically check the
medicines the doctor has prescribed. This is to ensure your medicines are safe and suitable for your treatment. - Your prescription will then be ready for dispensing; this includes preparing, labelling, and checking your medicines making sure they are fit for purpose.
- When your discharge medications have been prepared by pharmacy they are then sent back to the ward. The nurse will perform a further check on your discharge medications to ensure they are correct according to your discharge letter.
Your safety is our priority; this is why several safety checks take place.
- Your nurse, or pharmacy team member will go through your medications with you to ensure you fully understand how to take your medications at home.
How can you help us?
We encourage patients to bring in their own medications, this helps save the NHS money and also enables pharmacy to check your medications are correct and fit for purpose.
If you have been unable to bring in your medication, then please consider if a relative or friend could do this for you.
Any concerns? Need advice on your medications?
Please give us a call to speak to our medicine’s information team:
Telephone 01942 822466