by Kazeem Olalekan MRPharmS
In an article for the BBC, Lin-Nam Wang of The Pharmaceutical Journal (1) talked about being asked to throw away £2,250!! (2). In this hard times?! Even in good times that would be a bloody waste in my book! The issue of medicines waste in the NHS is complex and need concerted effort to address it. You can watch the interview she gave to the BBC by clicking on the picture below.
The role of the pharmacist will be critical here and an interplay of solution modalities should help address the problem. The pharmacist can use the medicines use review to drive up awareness of the need to order medication prudently. I cited a simple example on my PJOnline blog last year and how I addressed the issue (3). I however think there are some issues around prescribing which should be addressed by some specific changes. Clearly a 360o visibility of the problem is critical. Quoting Shigeo Shingo (4):
The most dangerous kind of waste is the waste we do not recognize.
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