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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Chemist refusing to sell cocodamol

95 replies

WinkyisbackontheButterBeer · 06/04/2017 11:44

Not really an aibu more of an is this normal.
I had minor surgery last week and am in a lot of pain.
This morning I asked dh to pop to the chemist for some cocodamol as paracetamol and ibuprofen are not touching it.
The lady in the chemist asked if they were for him to which dh truthfully said no they were for me.
She then refused to sell him them and said that I would have to come and get them myself. Dh said that if I could do that then I wouldn't need them, but she wouldn't budge.
In the end he had to go to a different chemist and told them that the cocodamol were for him to save the faff but this made him late for work so he can't drop them in to me until his lunch break.
Just wondered if this was normal practice and what the reasons for it might be.

OP posts:

lottieandmia · 06/04/2017 15:48

Definitely not normal. I've bought tablets with codeine in for family countless times. They just check with you whether they've had it before etc. Some people are just difficult. Although there may be a reason why she's cautious ATM.

lottieandmia · 06/04/2017 15:52

I've had serious back problems in the past and have been prescribed strong cocodamol - my GP said that I was fine to drive.

BeyondThePage · 06/04/2017 15:55

I've had serious back problems in the past and have been prescribed strong cocodamol - my GP said that I was fine to drive

That is fine - it has been prescribed by a doctor.
^You can drive after taking these drugs if:
you’ve been prescribed them and followed advice on how to take them by a healthcare professional^

Roomster101 · 06/04/2017 17:30

I imagine pharmacists have this x100

They probably don't. It's more a case of "use your professional judgment but if you get it wrong you are in big trouble" hence there is some variation in how they do things as some will be more risk adverse than others.

UnbornMortificado · 06/04/2017 17:49

They probably don't. It's more a case of "use your professional judgment but if you get it wrong you are in big trouble

That's interesting to know, I honestly thought there would be a load of guidelines involved what with it being a class B.

specialsubject · 06/04/2017 17:52

Blame the dealers and druggies, not the chemists.

Roomster101 · 06/04/2017 18:02

That's interesting to know, I honestly thought there would be a load of guidelines involved what with it being a class B.

It's not class B below a certain strength combined with paracetamol. If it was as well as needing a prescription there would indeed be very strict rules.

WobblyLegs5 · 06/04/2017 19:00

Isn't feminax still on the shelves? That's the same dosage, or atleast it was.

I'm on 30/500mg cocodamol X2 4 times a day, 300mg pregabilin twice a day, 50mg amitryptiline &5mg diazapam at night plus 2mg diazapam prn (& that's just for pain) and I can drive just fine on this, I can drink on it too but obviously not at the same time as driving! It depends on individual tolerance and gp can supervise/ok whether you should drive or not. Other than the pregabilin I was okd to bf one these also- as virtually doesn't pass through milk (bfsn pharmacist knows all)

WobblyLegs5 · 06/04/2017 19:01

Although, that was ones kids were over a yr, not new borns

UnbornMortificado · 06/04/2017 19:25

I can't drive on codeine, I've been on antipsychotics and mood stabilisers for years and I'm an ex-addict and drove fine but codeine (even the weaker OTC stuff) seems to really affect my judgement.

UnbornMortificado · 06/04/2017 19:28

I should add it was a prescription drug addiction (not codeine) I wasn't taking or driving on illegal drugs

SophieGiroux · 06/04/2017 19:47

People in the U.K. Should think themselves lucky they can buy co-codamol OTC. You can't get it in some countries even in the USA where you can buy 500 paracetamol off the shelf in the supermarket. People are questioned for a reason and codeine is a highly addictive drug that shouldn't be taken longer than 3 days or should be prescribed.

Pregnant women will struggle to buy a lot of things otc due to those items not being licensed for use in pregnancy. If a doctor prescribes them, then they are taking the responsibility for it.

Pseudoephedrine (decongestant) - its illegal to sell more than one pack. This is due to it being used for crystal meth manufacturing. Again in America, I could not buy this as I needed US ID as everyone who buys it has it entered into a database so they can track who is buying it and how frequently.

People need to stop moaning and accept there are reasons these things happen. Pharmacy staff don't refuse sales just for fun (in fact we need the extra income due to government cuts).

In OP's case, I think the co-codamol should have been sold but if it was something that was going to be needed longer than 3 days then the GP should've been contacted for a prescription.

BuggersMuddle · 07/04/2017 00:06

If you know what you're doing (and I really mean, you fully understand what you're taking and why), then giving the pharmacist 'the right answer' actually is common sense because they are hemmed in by restrictions that mean they can't sell you certain pharmacy medication if you don't meet the precise criteria for purchasing them.

I for example do take drugs which I wouldn't be sold with full disclosure (for reasons of OTC rules, not contraindication). So of course I give the right answer if I want to buy them rather than get them prescribed.

It can be a risky strategy if it's a new drug or circumstances of taking have changed (e.g. pregnancy or new prescription drug regime). I always us an interaction checker anyway because I've actually been prescribed drugs (when I couldn't see my regular GP) that were not ideal with my other medication / medical condition.

On that point, 'the doctor prescribed it' isn't always a reason the pharmacist should do as they are told. A family member was prescribed a drug that might have killed them given their other conditions and drug regime. The prescription was filled by a junior pharmacist in the hospital only for their boss to phone frantically trying to ensure my relative didn't take the drug. Now that's a failure of control in that it was filled, but it's still a demonstration of why there are multiple layers of control.

Original poster

WinkyisbackontheButterBeer · 07/04/2017 09:45

I didn't expect this thread to go o for quite so long.
With all of the concerns about misuse and guidelines and considering that you are constantly told to only take for three days at a maximum of 8 in 24 hours, I am surprised that they are sold in packs of 32.

OP posts:

unlucky83 · 07/04/2017 13:01

Pseudoephedrine (decongestant) ...is in some sudofed.
I found out years ago by accident that it helped me to get things done...I didn't take it daily or anything but only when I felt I was really struggling.
They have replaced it in some sudofed (the blocked nose stuff rather decongestant) with something that apparently isn't actually affective as a decongestant...it just doesn't work.
And they started restricting sales - you can only get packs of 12- so I started buying it from different chemists when I could... ... feeling dishonest and like an addict - which I honestly wasn't. I took it (not for a cold) maybe once every two months.
I was really annoyed - as I understand it you need a heck of a lot to make crystal meth...and the restrictions only had a short term impact (in the US - in the UK we don't have a meth problem) on reducing meth production.
I have now been diagnosed as having of ADHD - which explains a lot - why it helped me somewhat - (now I get controlled medication on prescription, kept in the safe at the chemist etc - supposedly addictive ....absolutely guilt free)

FunnysInLaJardin · 07/04/2017 13:39

Pseudoephedrine is a form of speed and so I do understand why there are regulations as to its sale.

I think the irritating thing is that in my case I went to a chemist where the staff know me well. I have been going there for years and am clearly not abusing the drug, but they were unable or unwilling to use their discretion.

UnbornMortificado · 07/04/2017 13:44

I think it's strange you can still get morphine OTC in some chemists. J Collis Browne has it in.

Also codeine linctus (cough medicine) has a fair whack of pure codeine in with no paracetamol in.

I hope no one ever checks my internet history, it's Mumsnet's fault

PuppyMonkey · 07/04/2017 13:47

Codeine makes me throw up, same with both DDs. DP took it once to help with severe tooth pain and ended up in A&E with crippling stomach pains, we thought he had appendicitis.

Fucking hate codeine.

SophieGiroux · 07/04/2017 20:30

Funnys it's not a matter of them being able to use their discretion, it is the law, they are not allowed to sell more than one pack. A pharmacist could be disciplined or worse case struck off for not abiding by it.

www.chemistanddruggist.co.uk/content/restriction-sale-pseudoephedrine-and-ephedrine-products

LovelyBath77 · 07/04/2017 20:41

I have the 30/500 ones on repeat prescription along with amitryptilline for pain relief. i don;t think could get it OTC though. Not sure.

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