\n Karen O\u2019Brien MBE, regional chief pharmacist for NHS England in the North West, has advised people to order any repeat prescriptions by Friday, August 15.\n<\/p>\n
\n This will allow GP practices and pharmacies enough time to prepare and dispense medication before the bank holiday weekend.\n<\/p>\n
\n The reminder comes as the NHS 111 service experiences a surge in calls for urgent repeat prescriptions during every bank holiday.\n<\/p>\n
\n During the 2024 summer bank holiday, the North West NHS 111 service answered 17,250 calls between August 24 and 26, with 2,357 of those relating to repeat prescriptions.\n<\/p>\n
\n Ms O\u2019Brien said: “Running out of your usual medication can have serious consequences, especially if you use them to control a heart condition, breathing problems, or have a health condition such as diabetes.”\n<\/p>\n
\n Pharmacies may operate reduced hours during the bank holiday, making it harder for patients to access medication at short notice.\n<\/p>\n
\n This can lead to increased pressure on emergency and urgent care services.\n<\/p>\n
\n Dr Paula Cowan, medical director for primary care for NHS England in the North West, said: “If you take regular medications, for whatever reason, and if you are due a repeat prescription in the week leading up to the summer bank holiday weekend, please remember to request it in advance.\n<\/p>\n
\n “This enables your GP practice and pharmacy to have your repeat medication ready in time for you.”\n<\/p>\n
\n READ MORE:\n<\/p>\n
\n Dr Cowan also encouraged patients to use digital services where possible.\n<\/p>\n
\n She said: “The easiest way to order repeat prescriptions is by using GP online services, via the NHS App or through your GP practice website.”\n<\/p>\n
\n The NHS App can also be used to book and cancel GP appointments, view medical records, and access trusted health advice.\n<\/p>\n
\n In an emergency, the public should call 999 or attend A&E.\n<\/p>\n
\n For non-urgent health concerns, people can use NHS 111 online at 111.nhs.uk, which offers advice and information about symptoms, medications, and emergency dental needs.\n<\/p>\n
\n NHS 111 online is not available for children under five; in such cases, the 111 phone line should be used.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Karen O\u2019Brien MBE, regional chief pharmacist for NHS England in the North West, has advised people to order…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":62508,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[64,63,137,490],"class_list":{"0":"post-62507","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-medication","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-health","11":"tag-medication"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62507","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=62507"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/62507\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/62508"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=62507"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=62507"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=62507"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}