Local pharmacies, like other healthcare services, are experiencing unprecedented demand during the current COVID-19 pandemic and the Humber Local Pharmaceutical Committee has issued the following advice for patients in relation to the ordering of repeat prescriptions. Thank you very much for your support during this period:

• Please allow at least seven days between ordering your prescription and collecting from a pharmacy.
• Please do not over order.
• Please do not ring the pharmacy to see if prescription is ready as this may block the phone lines for urgent calls.
• If you go to a pharmacy to collect a prescription before it is ready (some pharmacies are taking at least 7 days) then you may be asked to call back later that day or the following day.
• If your prescription is urgent that day please go to the pharmacy and they will complete it as soon as possible but you may have to wait or call back.
• If you get a message from your surgery/NHS app to say the prescription has been done, please give the pharmacy seven days to get it ready other than acute/urgent

These are the options for ordering your repeat prescription

• Online – Visit your GP Practice website for more information
• Through the national NHS App – Download the NHS APP and find out more.
• Through the post – to your GP Practice

Patients, including those that are ‘shielded’ or self-isolating, who cannot order online, or do not have friends, family or a volunteer who can order online on their behalf please visit the Government’s extremely vulnerable page online or call 0800 0288327, the Government’s dedicated helpline.

Only if all these possibilities have been exhausted then contact your pharmacy to see if they would consider ordering for you under the ‘Guidance- Patients who may require Assistance’. However, not all pharmacies will be able to provide this service.

Exceptions to above:

Those who receive batch prescriptions (Electronic Repeat Dispensing) only need to re-order at the end of the batch. Your pharmacy will inform you when you collect the last in the batch. Many GP Practices are currently increasing the number of patients on Electronic Repeat Dispensing.

Those who still have an agreement that the pharmacy will continue to order for them, for example, patients who receive their medication through a monitored dosage system, for example, a dosette box or blister pack.

If your pharmacy has already informed you they can no longer order your medication then you must use the process above to order.