How hard is it to get a prescription right

[Grkify]

Since being diagnosed been on various medication metformin gliclazide now insulin after being diagnosed type 1 . Had nothing but issues with my doctors mucking up prescriptions. On metformin they kept giving me a quick acting variant which plummeted my bs reading when in fact I needed a slow release version. In hospital on new years they had me on lantus and humilog F/A but doctor prescribed me lantus and humilog mix 25 effectively giving me two lots of basal insulin with a piddly amount of fast acting.

It has taken me almost 10 days from leaving hospital and numourous visits and phone calls to the doctors to get everything sorted went to the pharmacist today to pick up my first lot of insulin to find that yet again they have given me humilog mix 25. It wouldnt be as bad if I could pick up my prescription from the doctors and then get it filled at a pharmacist as it give me chance to check that its right at the doctors before leaving but it takes 2 days to get it prescribed by a doctor a day to get it sent to pharmacy then another day to get it ordered in as its not something that they stock. They wont go back to old system each time I get a repeat prescription I have to pick a pharmacy to get it sent to.

Most annoying thing is that now I have 5 humilog mix 25 pens which cant be used and will be chucked. Yet many other members are having issues getting test strip and lancets monitors and this is just money wasted that can be better spent elsewhere

 

[CarbsRok]

Simple solution is to go into your GP and explain what you want ask for the prescription then and there make sure it's correct then ask that it's put on repeat. Always check your prescription before you leave the pharmacy if it's not correct then refuse to take it. The pharmacist can also get on the blower to the GP to sort it out.
Also as an aside have you filled in the forms for an exemption certificate? If not make sue that is done as well.
PS Metformin does not cause hypos so you will have to blame something else for that ie a spluttering pancreas.

 

[Brunneria]

Hi and welcome!

There have been several type 2s posting on the forum who have found that metformin causes hypos.
So you are not alone.

Regarding the prescription. Tell me about it.
One letter from consultant required me to make about 5 phone calls to the docs, 2 visits and get 2 replacement prescriptions before I recd the two items the consultant intended. I was losing the will to live! Haven't had any problems on those items since, though.

 

[donnellysdogs]

You do not have to see your gp. This is a error that a nurse practitioner can sort out.

Nurse practitioners have got more allotted time to soend with patients and normally deal with emergecy appts at most practices nowadays.

Do also put in a formal complaint. If your practice has a website there should be a place on it which says contact us. Do write a 'nicely worded/termed note that you wish to have this error resolved immediately as the errors are having a vast detrimental impact to your health"

 

[Grkify]

Got an exemption certificate when first mistakenly they think diagnosed type 2 it has saved me a fortune as for checking at the pharmacy its something I am going to have to do from now on. I know it sounds stupid but I always feel a bit awkward doing so. trying to get an appointment to see anyone at my doctors is a nightmare. Every time I have ever seen a nurse regard prescriptions she has always referred me to a doctor a few days later as they always tell me that they are not able to change prescriptions without consulting a doctor. I assumed this was the same everywhere. If not I might look at moving surgeries.

I can deal with the injections. I can deal with having to test my bs like 10 times a day due to driving all the time. Its stuff like this that really gets me down. It sounds really stupid but I am one of those sort of people that enjoy everything just so. I have a routine and I like to stick to it and its really helping me get over the whole being T1 thing. I know it sounds little and petty but at the moment just want things to run as smoothly as possible.

As for metformin causing hypos I wouldnt call them hypos as such my blood sugar never went bellow 5 it would cause my blood sugar to be normal level for a few hours then suddenly rise not hugely but it just wasnt how it should be. Another issue I had was that I used to get terrible upset stomach when the pharmacy changed the brand of metformin to another not sure why this was as surely metformin is metformin.

 

[Daibell]

Sounds like a real mess, but I have several questions from your post. As a T1 you should be ona the Basal/Bolus regime. You mention Lantus so what have you been prescribed for your mealtime Bolus? Who is managing your ongoing diabetes - the hospital or your surgery? Ensure that you know what your ongoing prescription is. Mine is online and I order repeats online. If your surgery does this then it's the best way to manage scripts as it puts you in control. Complain to the Practice manager if the surgery messes up and as another poster said see a nurse practitoner if you need your script corrected. Standard Metformin (or SR) doesn't normally have much effect on blood sugar so I'm surprised you believe the Metformin caused this? You might want to suggest the surgery change your rapid to Novorapid which is the most common rapid and all pharmacy's nearly always have it in stock. Do you use a refillable cartridge pen or disposables? Re-fillables may be more available; I'm guessing. You may want to see whether changing to another surgery is worth considering

 

[donnellysdogs]

Depends whether the nurses you see are nurse practitioners..

Nurse can't prescribe without a gp signature.

Nurse practitioners can....

Eg our nurse practitioner that I saw a couple weeks ago as an acute urgent appointment could just prescribe me bottle of glucogel without gp signature. If I had just seen a nurse then I would have gad to wait for the nurse to get the gp to sign.

This is why many receptionists ask whats wrong with you so they can get you seen more urgently if necessary by a nurse practitioner if GP appointments are all taken.

The receptioniats aren't being nosey... They just ask nowadays to see if they can get people seen by nurse practitioners because joe public assumes only a GP can prescribe.

They must be nurse practitioners thiugh.. Not just nurses. They must have done the necessary training to allow them to prescribe.

 

[CollieBoy]

For a while I had problems with prescriptions being wrong (missing items etc) when being ordered via pharmacist. of course the surgery always blame pharmacist( funny how other GPs seem to get stuff from pharmacist OK) so request now comes direct from my PC via e-mail and any errors are folowed up immediately!

 

[donnellysdogs]

For a while I had problems with prescriptions being wrong (missing items etc) when being ordered via pharmacist. of course the surgery always blame pharmacist( funny how other GPs seem to get stuff from pharmacist OK) so request now comes direct from my PC via e-mail and any errors are folowed up immediately!

Trouble is thats ok when ur prescription is set up correctly in first place....

Totally agree that online prescriptions is an excellent method...but if you've just had a change in meds and **** ups occuring then online doesn't help especially when a consultant suggests and the gp cocks it up-so to speak!!

 

[CollieBoy]

Trouble is thats ok when ur prescription is set up correctly in first place....

Totally agree that online prescriptions is an excellent method...but if you've just had a change in meds and **** ups occuring then online doesn't help especially when a consultant suggests and the gp cocks it up-so to speak!!

I Don't use the online prescription, I still use a email request.
When consultant makes a change I request it in writing immediately and hand it to surgery(keeping p/copy) and request that it is actioned immediately!
any faux pas can then be dealt with by documentation & sorted PDQ.

 

[Grkify]

I am on humilog kwik pen for mealtime bolus working really well for me. Took a week or so for my body to start to process it. Diabetic nurse said that it would take a while was like breaking down a wall then I wouldn't need as much as my body wasnt used to processing blood sugar on the disposable pens rather than the refillable ones as heard that refillable ones can be fragile and my bags always getting chucked about last thing I need when at work is to break a pen as can be 50 plus miles from home.

As much as I understand the logic of e prescriptions, I would love to be able to pick up my prescription on a piece of paper and take it to any pharmacy I fancy when I am near one.

The only reason I believe it to be the metformin is that once it was changed back it sorted its self out again. At the time my surgery was dealing with my diabetes rather than the hospital and I guess its like having a jack of all trades decorating your house they can do it but its not going to be like getting a professional painter in. Being dealt with by specialist in diabetes in young adults now and have to go see her once a month.

So at the moment slowly learning to carb count its kinda guess work at the moment as body still all over the place with processing the insulin but doing fairly well hitting the targets I have been set 75% of the time 4-7 pre meal 4-9 2 hours post meal. Keeping a very close eye on my blood sugar. Was in hospital new years with keitonacidosis worst experience of my life and one that I never want to relive.

Just waiting to hear back from DVLA about my license and praying they dont revoke it, as if they do I am effectively jobless

 

[PepperTed]

Regarding the prescription f*ckups. Tell me about it.
One letter from consultant required me to make about 5 phone calls to the docs, 2 visits and get 2 replacement prescriptions before I recd the two items the consultant intended. I was losing the will to live! Haven't had any problems on those items since, though.

Ugh, yes. Last week my DSN faxed over a list of new things for my prescription, in preparation for starting the pump. I called the surgery on Wednesday, then went in on Friday, to make sure the prescription would be ready for today. They assured me it would be. Yesterday they finally bother to look at the letter and call me in because they couldn't read it, even though it was quite clear to me. They tried to put me on a blood pressure pill because it sounds a bit like Animas, which my nurse had written quite clearly as the name of my new pump, NOT a new medicine. Then the doctor kept asking me repeatedly what blood testing strips I needed, and all I could say was I didn't know because it was a new meter and I hadn't had them before.

We got there in the end, mostly because of my pharmacist who employed a bit of common sense... the GP hadn't put the right medicines on the script but the pharmacist gave me the right ones and said he would sort it out with the surgery.

 

[donnellysdogs]

My diabetic nurse from pump clinic sent me a script to take straight to the chemist to ensure I had the right oroducts on time for my new pump.

The chemists have more time to soend resolving problems and could then have written details on the info to take to the gp.

Dsn in hospital could have made your life easier... But some won't because that 1st script will then come off the hospital bill instead of the gp's.

All politics I'm afraid.

 

[PatsyB]

I have my prescriptions sent to the pharmacy and I pick them up monthly funny thing is they always seem to miss something off and I have to toddle off to the surgery to get another prescription, my hubby and I now like to make a bet on which medication they gonna miss off this time

 

[copepod]

Please don't chuck the wrongly prescribed insulin, nor give it back to pharmacy, as they'd have to chuck it.
Instead, please post to IDDT, who will send it to someone with diabetes in a developing country, where insulin is not easilt available and costs are way beyond what mpost people can afford. See http://iddt.org/here-to-help/iddt-campaigning/iddt-campaigns-to-help-people-in-developing-countries Scroll down to section headed Collection of insulin and other supplies.

 

[Grkify]

Thats an excellent idea. I will check the link out and send it asap. Been keeping it in my fridge as hate to see it go to waste

 

[jannergirl]

Feel like a NHS scrounger ,69 years old .and am paying for my own medication ,EX- blood strips ..

 

[jannergirl]

Feel like a NHS scrounger ,69 years old .and am paying for my own medication ,EX- blood strips ..

Honestly doing my utmost to control my blood sugar readings.But feel I am getting little help ,from my surgery.Tested once a year if I am lucky.Do I feel neglected?sure I do ,If I weighed 20 stone i would get all the medical help.ITS a case of the blind leading the blind.What can i do ?

 

[dan12321]

I had the same problem, the gp then blames the pharmacy, the pharmacy blames the gp, when i was first diagnosed i was in the honeymoon period, which required me to test my bloods more, basically had to beg for more strips

 

[jannergirl]

I am paying ,for all my strips ,,Dan 12321 you are spot on how bad is that ,maybe if you were a junkie you would get all the help you need ..It seems being a diabetic you can be treated as a second class citizen.Thats my opinion anyway,it stinks.