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Misuse of hyoscine butylbromide (Buscopan)
NHS England and Public Health England have issued a letter in order to raise awareness of the misuse of hyoscine butylbromide (Buscopan) which has been reported from HM prisons. Prescribers need to consider the appropriateness of new requests for hyoscine, particularly from patients recently discharged from prison.
Bulletin – Controlled Drugs: Learning from Incidents
Controlled Drugs: Learning from Incidents July 2015 NECS supports the NHS England Area Team Controlled Drugs Accountable Officer in ensuring the safe management and use of controlled drugs within the North East & Cumbria region. Based on the commonly reported incidents and the lessons learned, the aim of this bulletin is to share good practice across the region. Included in this bulletin: Balance discrepancies Spillages Common reasons for methadone discrepancies Reporting a balance discrepancy
July 2015 out of stock information
Antepsin – Supply Difficulties (Chugai) – Chugai has advised that there is no stock for community pharmacies of both Antepsin 1g/5ml Oral Suspension and Antepsin 1g Tablets Chugai stated: “Due to a manufacturing problem it is unlikely that supply will be resumed until the end of the 2015.” If you require to talk to a member of staff in an emergency, please contact 0208-987-5600 (within the hours of 9 am to 5pm) Havrix Monodose™ (Hepatitis A (inactivated) vaccine (adsorbed)) – Supply Difficulties (GSK) – Due to unexpected manufacturing issues, UK availability of monovalent hepatitis A vaccine (Havrix Monodose™) from GSK […]
APC update July 2015
The following guidelines have been approved and are now available for use in Durham and Darlington CCGs: Oral analgesia in non-cancer pain Drug considerations in the management of blood lipids Treatment pathway for overactive bladder Melatonin shared care guidelines
Rifaximin for preventing episodes of overt hepatic encephalopathy
Rifaximin is recommended, within its marketing authorisation, as an option for reducing the recurrence of episodes of overt hepatic encephalopathy in people aged 18 years or older. The recommended dose for this indication is 550mg twice daily.
Paediatric diabetes referral guidelines for general practice
Paediatric diabetes referral guidelines are now available on the NECS Medicines Optimisation website.
Lithium shared care guideline
The lithium shared care guideline from TEWV has been updated to recommend six monthly checks as per NICE guidance. The updated guideline is available through the TEWV link on the NECS Medicines Optimisation website.
Nitrofurantoin tablets price reduction
The price of nitrofurantoin 100mg tablets has reduced from £12.29 for 28 tablets in June, to £3.53 for 28 tablets in July. Therefore, when appropriate, 100mg tablets are currently the most cost-effective nitrofurantoin preparation. The North of Tyne formulary includes nitrofurantoin: 50mg & 100mg tablets 50mg capsules ( in macrocrystalline form) 100mg m/r capsules (Macrodantin® & Macrobid®) 25mg in 5ml sugar-free suspension In September 2013 the prices were £3.66 for 30 x 50 mg capsules vs £31.33 for 28 tablets, hence the drive in many areas at that point to prioritise 50mg caps over tablets. The work done then generated […]