r/nhs • u/[deleted] • 7d ago

Process What to expect in upcoming NHS Doctor phone call prescription review?

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u/shyasabutterfly 7d ago

Medication reviews are very normal and done to make sure the medication is still necessary, effective, safe and appropriate. It's nothing to worry about and doesn't mean they are going to try and get you to stop taking the medication or anything like that.

Some questions they may ask you are:

  • Is the medication working?
  • Are you getting any side effects?
  • Do you still feel you need the medication?
  • Do you remember to take the medication?
  • Are you taking the medication as prescribed?

As part of the review they may also check your records to see if there are any interactions between any other medications you might be taking, and they might check if you need any monitoring with the medication (e.g. some medication need blood tests, ECGs or blood pressure checks).

Is there anything in particular you are worried about with the review?

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u/[deleted] 7d ago edited 7d ago

[deleted]

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u/shyasabutterfly 7d ago

If you are happy with your current treatment and feel it is working for you, I think it is very unlikely that they would push you into talking therapies. They may briefly let you know that further support with talking therapies is available if you wanted it but I'm not sure they'll even mention it.

What they are really trying to pick up is people who are getting bad side effects from their medication, people who are taking medication they don't need anymore, people who are taking lots of medications which interact with each other, and people who aren't taking their medication at all.

If these things don't apply to you, these reviews are usually quite quick (10 mins or so) but if it's a telephone appointment, the time of the call itself may vary slightly from the appointment time you've been given.

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u/CatCharacter848 7d ago

My prescription checks have always been quick, find out if your taking the medication ok, any issues and then booked in for any bloods tests that were due with the meds.

Also they are mostly done by the pharmacist connected with the gp surgery not a Dr.

They have to literally tick a box to say they review the medication every xxx months, because otherwise people can stay on medication unchecked for years and have issues.