Archives: Contractor Email

Dear Colleague

You will have received correspondence from the Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland  in respect of the launch of the Customer Relationship Management system, Regulator Online (ROL) which is used to complete registration activities (such as updating personal details, completing annual retention and submitting applications).

Additionally, in respect of Continuous Professional Development (CPD), pharmacists can use the portal to:

• record CPD cycles throughout the CPD year;
• submit, amend and re-submit annual CPD portfolios;
• apply for Extenuating Circumstances; and
• retain all CPD records.

The CPD section of ROL is now active.

ACTION

Contractors are advised to:

1. Note the correspondence from The Pharmaceutical Society NI.
2. Visit portal.psni.org.uk and log in with your Membership online (members.psni.org.uk) username and password noting that the two systems are currently separate. If you reset your password on one system, it will not reset on both.
3. Note that if you need further guidance on logging in on the new CPD portal, please visit the PSNI website for a 1 minute tutorial video.

Any queries should, in the first instance, be directed to the Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland.

Kind regards – Mike

SENT ON BEHALF OF
PROF. MIKE MAWHINNEY
Head of Regulatory Affairs

Dear Colleague

The fifth update concessionary prices were granted for January 2022:

Drug	Pack Size	Concessionary Price
Brinzolamide 10mg/ml / Timolol 5mg/ml eye drops	5	£4.52
Celecoxib 200mg capsules	30	£6.20
Clonidine 25microgram tablets	112	£8.24
Co-amilozide 5mg/50mg tablets	28	£15.48
Dexamethasone 2mg tablets	50	£3.81
Dipyridamole 100mg tablets	84	£6.95
Famotidine 40mg tablets	28	£26.41
Isotretinoin 20mg capsules	30	£14.02
Ivabradine 2.5mg tablets	56	£25.21
Lisinopril 5mg tablets	28	£0.80
Losartan 100mg / Hydrochlorothiazide 25mg tablets	28	£11.21
Methocarbamol 750mg tablets	100	£12.73
Midazolam 10mg/2ml solution for injection ampoules	10	£5.73
Naftidrofuryl 100mg capsules	84	£6.79
Oxybutynin 5mg tablets	56	£1.45
Pravastatin 40mg tablets	28	£1.59
Rivastigmine 3mg capsules	28	£3.31
Ropinirole 500microgram tablets	28	£5.22
Sulfasalazine 500mg gastro-resistant tablets	112	£27.70
Sulfasalazine 500mg tablets	112	£24.28
Tacrolimus 0.1% ointment	60	£36.99
Timolol 0.5% eye drops	5	£2.60
Tolterodine 2mg tablets	56	£2.97
Trazodone 100mg capsules	56	£3.45
Rivastigmine 1.5mg capsules	28	£3.66

Concessionary prices will be paid against the usual code, no additional endorsements are needed.

Concessionary prices may be granted up until the end of the month so CPNI will notify you of any further concessionary prices as and when they are agreed.

Please continue to notify CPNI of any pricing issues you are experiencing via our new Medicine Shortage Reporter. Concessionary prices are also published on the CPNI website.

Kind regards

Dear Colleague

As you know, CPNI has been issuing updates relating to the EU Falsified Medicines Directive (FMD) which imposes legal obligations aimed at helping to prevent entry of falsified medicinal products into the supply chain.  The Delegated Regulation was implemented in all EU Member States on 9 February 2019 and is still a legal requirement in Northern Ireland.   We wrote to you recently HEREadvising that SecurMed will be implementing a new version of the UKNI Medicines Verification System (UKNI MVS) in April 2022 and advising you to contact your IT provider to ensure that you have the correct version installed.   We have been in touch with McLernons, one of the pharmacy IT providers, and they have confirmed that there is no need for individual contractors to contact their Service Desk, as the required software changes will be in place before the new version of the UKNI MVS is released in April 2022.

ACTION

Contractors are advised to:

1. Note the advice in respect of McLernons.

Kind regards – Mike

SENT ON BEHALF OF
PROF. MIKE MAWHINNEY
Head of Regulatory Affairs

Dear Colleague

You will have received a letter from Joe Brogan, Assistant Director of Integrated Care, Head of Pharmacy and Medicines Management reminding contractors that the use of the private controlled drug requisition form (CDRF1) is mandated in the circumstances outlined (see the letter HERE for full details).

Contractors are required to ensure that:

• Schedule 2 or 3 CD stocks for private or non-Health Service purposes are only supplied via a CDRF1 form
• The CDRF1 is signed by an authorised person
• The person/organisation ordering the CDs fully completes part two of the CDRF1 form – see guidance notes on the reverse of the CDRF1 form
• The pharmacist supplying the CDs fully completes part three of the CDRF1 form – see guidance notes on the reverse of the CDRF1 form
• Original completed CDRF1 forms (not copies) are submitted to the Business Services Organisation (BSO) ideally at the end of the month in which they are received, with the exemption of veterinary requisitions and those relating to inter-pharmacy stock transfers; these are not required to be submitted to BSO.

It is recommended that a copy of the CDRF1 form is retained in the pharmacy

ACTION

Contractors should ensure that:

1. Staff involved in the management and use of CDs are fully apprised of the content of this letter; and
2. SOPs reflect the legal requirements as appropriate.

Kind regards – Mike

SENT ON BEHALF OF
PROF. MIKE MAWHINNEY
Head of Regulatory Affairs

Dear Colleague

As you know, CPNI has been issuing updates relating to the EU Falsified Medicines Directive (FMD) which imposes legal obligations aimed at helping to prevent entry of falsified medicinal products into the supply chain.  The Delegated Regulation was implemented in all EU Member States on 9 February 2019 and is still a legal requirement in Northern Ireland.
 
SecurMed has written to you recently advising that they will be implementing a new version of the UKNI Medicines Verification System (UKNI MVS) in April 2022.
 
This requires a change in the software and scanner system you use to connect to it. SecurMed indicates that your software supplier has been informed of this and should have implemented (or be preparing to implement) the relevant changes to update their End User software for continuation of your access to the UKNI MVS.
 
If your software and scanner system is not up to date when the new system is rolled out, you will no longer be able to access the UKNI MVS and you will not be able to remain compliant with FMD requirements.

ACTION

Contractors are advised to:

1. Check with your software supplier to ensure that you have the updated version of your FMD software installed (or will have it installed by April 2022). You should ask your software supplier to confirm that your NMVS software is, or will be, compatible with NMVS Core 1.10.

If you have any queries, please raise them with your software supplier in the first instance.

Kind regards – Mike

SENT ON BEHALF OF
PROF. MIKE MAWHINNEY
Head of Regulatory Affairs

Dear Colleague

Please find correspondence HERE from HSCB Pharmacy and Medicines Management.

SUMMARY

• HSCB have been made aware of fraudulent private prescriptions having been presented in the Belfast area.
• A female presented a prescription for diazepam reportedly from a GP surgery in Dublin. The address of the ‘patient’ was in Clondalkin, Co. Dublin. The pharmacist contacted the practice concerned who advised this was a false prescription. At this time the female left the pharmacy and the prescription was not dispensed.
• On the same day an individual presented a prescription for Diazepam and Stemetil in a separate area of Belfast. The GP was a genuine GP in Tallaght Cross, Dublin. As far as the pharmacist knows, all the details on the script were accurate (telephone number, registration etc.) but it was a forged script. This prescription was dispensed.

ACTION

• Contractors are asked to review the correspondence.
• Pharmacists are reminded that when supplying medications and in particular medicines liable to abuse/misuse, against any prescription, due diligence must be taken to satisfy themselves that the prescription is genuine.
• Please report all confirmed instances of false prescriptions, whether medication was obtained or not, firstly to the PSNI on 101 (or 999 in the case of an emergency) and also to BSO Counter Fraud and Probity Services (see HERE).
• Please do not hesitate to contact your local Local Integrated Care Offices or the CPNI office should you require any further information.

Kind regards