Scots mum left fuming after “overwhelmed” pharmacy issues alleged 10-day prescription order notice

A SCOTS mum has been left fuming by a notice issued by an “overwhelmed” pharmacy requesting that all patients order their repeat prescriptions at least 10 days in advance.

Karen Simon had been collecting her medication on Tuesday from an alleged Morrisons pharmacy in Livingston, West Lothian when she came across a sign issuing the new rule.

The 43-year-old claims that she – along with many others – have had to turn to the Morrisons pharmacy for their prescriptions due to apparent understaffing issues at their Lloyds pharmacy.

Now, the mum from Dedridge, West Lothian has been left frustrated by the rule – reasoning that it is not possible for some vital medications to be ordered so soon after their previous batch.

Due to a GP quantity control, many health practices are restricted to a limited quantity of each medication prescribed to a patient.

This goes against the alleged sign informing patients that they would need to order medication at least a week in advance.

An image shows a white A4 sign placed on a door, reading: “Please re-order your repeat prescription 7-10 days before medication is required. Thank you.”

Frustrated, Karen took to social media on Tuesday to share the photo and air her frustrations at the situation.

She wrote: “Just an update that Morrisons Pharmacy are now requesting that everyone who uses them are to request their repeat prescriptions at least 7-10 days before they are due to [sic] overwhelming demand they have been given due to Lloyds pharmacy being closed.

“I am not sure how this is going to work for people like myself who are taking quantity controlled medications and can’t request early like this”.

Karen added in the comments: “I haven’t had a problem with Morrisons for a long while but I have had a problem with their customer service a few times.

“There are a few of their assistants who like to think they are above themselves and can ask questions they have no right to ask.

“We are given medications for a reason, that’s why they are prescribed, we shouldn’t have to explain to them why we are taking them.

“They advised me to ask my GP to increase my quantity for my medications and to still order my repeats at least 7-10 days before needing them but that would leave me with a large number of medications in the house that are controlled substances, which I’m fairly certain goes against prescribing guidelines.

“I’ve been down and spoken to our Boots Pharmacy, explained the medications I’m on to the pharmacist.

“I’ve explained my medical history and condition/illnesses, that the current pharmacy can not accommodate the quantity I am currently being given in the time frame in which they are being requested.

“[I’ve asked] Is it possible this pharmacy would be able to?

“They’ve said as long as my prescription is ready on time at the GP surgery he doesn’t see it being a problem why it can’t be turned around within the timeframe I need.”

The post received dozens of likes and comments as many expressed their similar concerns towards the new rule.

One person wrote: “Morrisons used to be a great pharmacy but absolutely useless now. l went to pick up my tablets two months ago, after requesting them to be reordered when l picked up my last lot.

“[I] was told when l went to pick them up [that] they do not do that anymore, so they didn’t have them. How was l supposed to know when l wasn’t told?

“Now l use Boots.”

Another said: “We certainly lack pharmacies and staff with the ones we have to cope with the demand.”

A third commented: “Not great for me on controlled drugs.”

A fourth added: “They need to work stuff as it comes in, then there wouldn’t be a backlog. Proper management is what’s needed.”

A fifth wrote: “They’ve been flexible with extras of bits that we’ve needed but that’s not been due to the pharmacy being overloaded.

“Other option is to pick up prescriptions yourself and do the drive around but that’s not great for those who don’t have cars.”

Speaking to Karen today, she said: “Obviously, during the pandemic with the lockdowns a system got put in place that if you required a prescription on repeat then you would order it and it got sent directly to a pharmacy of your choosing.

“You had to wait the normal two or three days for processing at the GP surgery and it got sent, and then a further three to five days to pick up for the pharmacy to turn around.

“This system has just stayed in place but with several of the Lloyds pharmacies in our area here in West Lothian not being able to provide the service that’s required, other local pharmacies are now having to pick up the slack for them.

“That has had a knock-on effect where it’s gone from being approximately five to six days from first ordering your medications at the GPs online to pick up at your desired pharmacy to now being approximately 12 days in total before your prescription is processed and ready for pick up.

“So my pharmacy is asking that we order our medications at least seven to ten days prior to actually needing them.

“In my case with one of my medications, which is a controlled substance, that would mean I’d have to order two days after just ordering which I can’t do because of prescribing guidelines.

“So, I was advised by the pharmacy to ask for my quantity to be increased, which being a controlled substance, can’t be done either. I can only speculate and comment on the Lloyds local to me.

“They are constantly short on staff, shut days at a time, open on a morning but then shut half a day without notice. They’ve lost my prescriptions numerous times.

“I used their in-house service to order my medications and they didn’t several times – and my husband’s.

“They gave me adult doses of medications for my middle daughter toward the end of my time with them before we moved pharmacy.”

Morrisons has been approached for comment.

A spokesperson for Morrisons said: “Many pharmacies are experiencing increased demand. To ensure we maintain a safe and effective workflow, patients may be asked to order their routine repeat medication further in advance.”