Order a Repeat Prescription

If you forget to obtain a prescription for repeat medication and thus run out of important medicines, you may be able to get help from your Pharmacy. Under the Urgent Provision of Repeat Medication Service, Pharmacists may be able to supply you with a further cycle of a previously repeated medicine, without having to get a prescription from your GP. 

If you have run out of important medication, telephone your usual Pharmacy to check that they offer this service; if they don’t, they may either direct you to another Pharmacy who does provide it, or ask you to phone 111 where you can request details of a local Pharmacy that provides the service.

You must then take with you to the relevant Pharmacy, proof of both your identification and of your medication (for example, your repeat prescription list or the empty box which should have your details printed on it). Please note that controlled drugs and antibiotics are not provided through this service, you will need to ring 111 for these.

If you receive stoma products from your Pharmacy or other supplier and/or receive items such as continence products, please ensure you have sufficient supplies as you may encounter difficulties in obtaining these over Bank Holidays, or when the Surgery is closed.

If you need help with NHS costs or need to find out if you can get free prescriptions please click the button below for further information.

If you know you’ll have to pay for a lot of NHS prescriptions, it may be cheaper to buy a prescription prepayment certificate (PPC) – effectively a prescription “season ticket”.

A PPC covers all your NHS prescriptions, including NHS dental prescriptions, no matter how many items you need.

We would ask that patients do not pre-order more medication than you actually need. This is to ensure that an artificial shortage is not created.

The easiest and most efficient way to order your prescriptions is on the NHS app or through online access.

If you would like to set up online access you can find more information here GP online services.

If you are unable to order your prescription through one of these online services, please ask our Care Navigator team about our new telephone ordering service Voice Connect (details above).

We do not accept requests for repeat prescriptions by telephone. This prevents dangerous errors being made and leaves the telephone lines free for urgent matters. However, we have introduced a new telephone ordering service called Voice Connect. If you would like to sign up to this service please see the information above.

Each year 25% of the population visit their GP for a respiratory tract infection (eg sinus, throat or chest infection). These are usually caused by viruses.

For patients who are otherwise healthy, antibiotics are not necessary for viral infections.

These infections will normally clear up by looking after yourself at home with rest, plenty of fluids and paracetamol.

Ear infections typically last 4 days: 89% of cases clear up on their own

A sore throat typically lasts 7 days: 40% of cases clear up after 3 days and 90% after 7 days without antibiotics

Sinusitis typically lasts 17 days: 80% clear up in 14 days without antibiotics

Cough/bronchitis typically lasts 21 days: Antibiotics reduce symptoms by only 1 day

Antibiotics only work for infections caused by bacteria.

Taking unnecessary antibiotics for viral infections should be avoided because they may not be effective next time you have a bacterial infection.

If you are concerned about taking medication abroad you can visit your local community pharmacy who are well placed to provide the information that is needed, and can also advise on a wide range of travel-related health issues.

The Doctors have taken the decision not to prescribe diazepam in cases where there is a fear of flying. There are a number of reasons for this that are set out below.

1. Diazepam is a sedative, which means it makes you sleepy and more relaxed. If there is an emergency during the flight it may impair your ability to concentrate, follow instructions and react to the situation. This could have serious safety consequences for you and those around you.
2. Sedative drugs can make you fall asleep, however when you do sleep it is an unnatural non-REM sleep. This means you won’t move around as much as during natural sleep. This can cause you to be at increased risk of developing a blood clot (DVT) in the leg or even the lung. Blood clots are very dangerous and can even prove fatal. This risk is even greater if your flight is greater than 4 hours.
3. Whilst most people find benzodiazepines like diazepam sedating, a small number of people experience the opposite effect and may become aggressive. Benzodiazepines can also cause disinhibition and lead you to behave in a way that you would not normally. This could impact on your safety as well as that of other passengers and could also get you into trouble with the law.
4. According to the national prescribing guidelines that doctors follow (the British National Formulary, or BNF) benzodiazepines are not allowed to be prescribed in cases of phobia. Thus your doctor would be taking a significant legal risk by prescribing diazepam for fear of flying as it is going against these guidelines. Benzodiazepines are only licensed short term for a crisis in generalised anxiety. If this is the case, you should be getting proper care and support for your mental health and not going on a flight.
5. Diazepam and similar drugs are illegal in a number of countries. They may be confiscated or you may find yourself in trouble with the police.
6. Diazepam stays in your system for quite a while. If your job requires you to submit to random drug testing you may fail this having taken diazepam.

We appreciate that fear of flying is very real and very frightening. A much better approach is to tackle this properly with a Fear of Flying course run by the airlines. We have listed a number of these below.

Easy Jet – Tel 0203 8131644
Fearless Flyer EasyJet

British Airways – Tel 01252 793250
Flying with confidence

Virgin – Tel 01423 714900
Flying without fear

When you are discharged from hospital you should normally receive 7 days’ supply of medication.

On receipt of your medication requirements, which will be issued to you by the hospital, please bring this to the surgery or post via a stamped addressed envelope before your supply of medication has run out.

Hospital requests for change of medication will be checked by the GP first, and if necessary your Doctor will issue you with a Prescription. The Practice will endeavour to issue you with your prescription on that day, but it cannot be issued until your medical details are checked by the Doctor, your prescription should normally be ready by 4pm on that day, or you may be advised to attend the next day.

The Doctors will review your medication, regularly, which may involve changes to your tablets, in accordance with current health Board policies. Please be reassured that this will not affect your treatment.

Specialists will often suggest particular medication at a hospital appointment and ask us to prescribe for you. To ensure your safety we do need to receive written information from the specialist before prescribing. Sometimes a medicine is suggested that is not in our local formulary. There is nearly always a close alternative, and specialists are told that we sometimes make suitable substitutions when you are referred. We will always let you know if this is the case.

Medication Sick Days

When you should stop taking your medication?

When you are unwell with any of the following:

• Vomiting or diarrhoea (unless only minor)
• Fevers, sweats shaking

Then STOP taking the medicines listed here. Restart when you are well (after 24-48 hours of eating and drinking normally). If you are in any doubt, please contact us or your pharmacist.

• ACE Inhibitors: Medicine names ending in ‘pril’ e.g. lisinopril, perindopril, ramipril
• ARBs: Medicine names ending in ‘sartan’ e.g. losartan, candesartan, valsartan
• NSAIDs: Anti-inflammatory pain killers e.g. ibuprofen, diclofenac, naproxen
• Diuretics: Sometimes called ‘water pills’ egg furosemide, spironolactone, indapamide, bendroflumethiazide
• Metformin: A medicine for diabetes

For your safety, patients on repeat medication will be asked to see a doctor, practice pharmacist, nurse practitioner or practice nurse at least once a year to review these regular medications. When this review is due a notification should appear on your repeat slip so please watch out for it and ensure that you book an appropriate appointment as further prescriptions cannot be issued until you have had a review.

Non-repeat prescriptions, known as ‘acute’ prescriptions are medicines that have been issued by the Doctor but not added to your repeat prescription records. This is normally a new medication issued for a trial period, and may require a review visit with your Doctor prior to the medication being added onto your repeat prescription records.

Some medications are recorded as acute as they require to be closely monitored by the Doctor. Examples include many anti-depressants, drugs of potential abuse or where the prescribing is subject to legal or clinical restrictions or special criteria. If this is the case with your medicine, you may not always be issued with a repeat prescription until you have consulted with your Doctor again.

A GP, nurse or pharmacist will generally not give you a prescription for over-the-counter (OTC) medicines for a range of minor health conditions.

GPs have a responsibility to monitor a patient for whom they are providing healthcare or prescribing medicines. When a patient registered with a GP practice in the Vale of York or North Yorkshire travels abroad, provision of medicines for the treatment of existing long-term conditions may be provided at NHS expense for up to three months.

If a patient is travelling abroad for longer than three months, they are expected to arrange for an alternative supply of medicine in their location. Most medicines are available in most countries, so they are likely to be able to access a continuing supply for long-term conditions.

Under the National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2015, a person must be removed from a practice’s list of patients when:
• they notify that they intend to be away from the UK for a period of at least three months
• they have been absent from the UK for a period of at least three months.
The removal of the patient from the list takes effect from:
• the date of their departure;
• the date on which notification is received of their departure, whichever is later.

The Government has provided guidance on the medical and health support available for British people who are unable to return home due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Anyone in this situation who is running out of their prescription medication should contact their travel insurance company, which may be able to help get the prescription replaced. If they cannot help, seek medical assistance and follow advice from the local authorities.

The Government’s foreign travel advice pages offer healthcare information for different countries. The
coronavirus and health sections provide essential information.

UK citizens travelling in Europe can read the guidance on how to get state healthcare for UK nationals
visiting the EU, Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway or Switzerland. Each healthcare system is different, and
in some countries UK citizens need to pay to have treatment. There’s different guidance for healthcare for those visiting Spain, visiting Ireland or going to live, study or work in the EU.
To find healthcare services where you are, see the Government’s worldwide lists of doctors and
medical facilities. These include English-speaking doctors.

Those in need of urgent advice or information can contact the Foreign, Commonwealth &
Development Office 24/7 from anywhere in the world by calling their nearest British embassy, high
commission or consulate.

GPs are often asked to prescribe over-the-counter medication to satisfy nurseries and schools. This is a misuse of GP time, and is not necessary.

If you are staying outside the practice area within England for holidays, work etc and and need your repeat medications we can arrange to forward a request to a pharmacy near where you are staying. Please provide the name and address of the pharmacy, but most importantly the postcode

If you are away from the practice area for more than 3 months, you should register temporarily with another GP practice to obtain your medication.

STOMP stands for stopping over medication of people with a learning disability, autism or both with psychotropic medicines. It is a national project involving many different organisations which are helping to stop the over use of these medicines.  STOMP is about helping people to stay well and have a good quality of life.

It is well worth keeping a small stock of useful medicines at home in your (locked) first aid cupboard. For instance, pain killers (analgesics) such as Paracetamol, Ibuprofen or aspirin (children under 16 and people with asthma should not take aspirin), or Ibuprofen syrups  for children, Mild laxatives, Anti-diarrhoeal medicines, Indigestion remedy (for example, antacids) Travel sickness tablets, and Sunscreen – SPF15 or higher Sunburn treatment (for example, calamine). For more detail see NHS UK Medicine Chest.

Recommended dose is 0.7mg/Kg (700microgrammes/Kg) once daily, increased if necessary to 3mg/kg once daily, maximum dose 20mg below age of 1 year.

Dissolve ONE x 10mg tablet in in 5mls cool boiled water for doses up to 10mg.

If dose over 10mg then dissolve TWO x 10mg tablets in 10ml cool boiled water.

Start on the lower end of recommended dose for your baby, if symptoms persist then you can incre3ase the dose every few days moving to middle of the recommended range and then if necessary to the higher end of the dose range.