The Health and Personal Social Services (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2004

Prescribing

39.—(1) Subject to paragraphs 40 and 41, a prescriber shall order any drugs, medicines or appliances which are needed for the treatment of any patient who is receiving treatment under the contract by issuing to that patient a prescription form and such a prescription form shall not be used in any other circumstances.

(2) In issuing any such prescription form the prescriber shall himself sign the prescription form in ink with his initials, or forenames, and surname in his own handwriting and not by means of a stamp and shall so sign only after particulars of the order have been inserted in the prescription form, and –

(a) the prescription form shall not refer to any previous prescription form; and

(b) a separate prescription form shall be used for each patient.

(3) Where a prescriber orders the drug buprenorphine or a drug specified in Schedule 2 to the Misuse of Drugs Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002 (controlled drugs to which regulations 14, 15, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 26 and 27 of those Regulations apply)(1) for supply by instalments for treating addiction to any drug specified in that Schedule, he shall –

(a) specify the number of instalments to be dispensed and the interval between each instalment; and

(b) order only such quantity of the drug as will provide treatment for a period not exceeding 14 days.

(4) In a case of urgency a prescriber may request a chemist to dispense a drug or medicine before a prescription form is issued, only if –

(a) that drug or medicine is not a Scheduled drug;

(b) that drug is not a controlled drug within the meaning of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971(2), other than a drug which is for the time being specified in Schedules 4 or 5 to the Misuse of Drugs Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002(3); and

(c) he undertakes to furnish the chemist, within 72 hours, with a prescription form completed in accordance with sub-paragraph (3).

(5) In a case of urgency a prescriber may request a chemist to dispense an appliance before a prescription form is issued only if –

(a) that appliance does not contain a Scheduled drug or a controlled drug within the meaning of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971, other than a drug which is for the time being specified in Schedule 5 to the Misuse of Drugs Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2002;

(b) in the case of a restricted availability appliance, the patient is a person, or it is for a purpose, specified in the Drug Tariff; and

(c) he undertakes to furnish the chemist, within 72 hours, with a prescription form completed in accordance with sub-paragraph (3).

(1)

S.R. 2002/1

(2)

1971 c. 38

(3)

Schedule 4 was amended by S.R. 2003/314