Calling pharmacist drug question

[Thunderpants88]

So I called out of hours two nights ago and got an emergency prescription for 8x5 mgs Valium

they sent it to the wrong pharmacist-to one that is closed over the weekend. I rang back and they refaced it to an open pharmacy.

my husband picked up the original script from the open pharmacy but I rang the other one which was open for an hour today and they said it was also there waiting collection.

question. What happens if I collect both?

Anyone?

Surley the collection of the prescriptions is sent to your GP. I’d be worried if I got to the w2nd place they knew the 1st had been collected.
if you were meant to have double toe dose you’d have been originally prescribed it

You should probably have asked the Pharmacist.

Are you likely to need the second batch once the first batch is complete? If so, i'd just collect the 2nd one and it saves you a call once the first batch have all been taken.

Why would you do that? Valium (diazepam) is very addictive and you shouldn't exceed the amount that was originally prescribed for a good reason. Scripts can be randomly checked for compliance. And if/when it gets back to them, the GP can have you down as someone who's prone to prescription drug abuse which will make it harder for you to get dangerous or addictive medications in the future, which may affect what prescriptions you can have going forward.

It’s a weird one as I think it is the same original prescription but it’s been faxed to two different places. I am likely to need the second lot as I have extremely anxious going on to a higher dose of anti anxiety medication long term this is just the very rough beginning part of adjusting to the new dose. I feel awful at the moment and the Valium is taking the edge off

Question is more how will they know I collected both scripts?

I expect it'll be right there on the computer screen?

It’s all tracked.They can see if and when you collect prescriptions.

The honest answer is that you are unlikely to be eligible to be prescribed any more Valium, and it may impact on a doctors happiness to prescribe you other addictive drugs, too.

Well, to answer the question, it's because this information is all held on an electronic database showing when prescriptions are prepared and collected.

Just a word of warning about diazepam and how incredibly addictive it is. A friend of mine took it for a couple of months (not even every day, only as needed) while adjusting to a new anxiety med and ended up very quickly addicted, to the point that when she tried to come off of it very quickly (as advised by her GP) her mental health tanked and she had to be admitted to a psychiatric unit. She had to enter a drug treatment program and taper off incredibly slowly, it took 18 months and was absolute hell.

I’m not trying to scare you and I know that for a few days Valium can be very helpful for acute short term anxiety, but doctors often don’t give all the facts on how dangerous it can be to take it for longer than very very short periods. I had no idea it was that addictive nor did my friend otherwise she wouldn't have touched it. So I would recommend against picking up and taking more than the prescribed amount.

You would be able to pick it up without a problem however it will eventually be realised you requested it twice and may look like that was done fraudulently. Nothing would happen legally but it may mean they are extremely weary about giving you this medication again and may consider this drug seeking or medication abuse.

Well you'll get double the amount. Because of what it is I'd probably try it. Lol. Plead ignorance if husband picked the last one.
But you're only really meant to have one. And it shouldn't be easy to get it twice. They're really addictive as you know.

It’s not faxed it e-prescribing so sent electronically and accessed via your medical record using your NHS number.
I had a prescription sent to my usual pharmacy and they didn’t have the medication in stock. So I went to another, they accessed via my NHS number and dispensed to me. The dispensing is recorded. So if I’d gone back to the original one they would have known I’d already collected the prescription elsewhere.

I don't think OP is intending to take double the dosage? Just that once the first lot runs out she can continue on the second lot, rather than ring up and wait for it to be delivered/pick it up. Unless I've understood or misread it wrong.

She was going to take twice the amount she was prescribed. Else why did she want the tablets twice. You don't get a valium script on repeat. It's super controlled. There was no 'second lot'. It was an error.

If it's sent electronically they will not be able to dispense it. Each script issued has a barcode. The barcodes for the script will be exactly the same, so if you go and try to collect it you will be making yourself look like an addict as they will already know that script has been redeemed and dispensed by another pharmacy the moment they try to click on it to print it. You also risk them contacting your GP surgery to report you trying to collect a script that you've already collected elsewhere.

You would be in possession of a controlled drug without a valid prescription. That might be an offence and as others have pointed out, the proof would be right there on the computers. Also, you will lose all credibility with your GP., if they find out.

Electronic prescriptions are a code which the pharmacy has to remove from the NHS spine to dispense it. Once it's removed from the spine it can't be dispensed until the original pharmacy returns it. This is to stop duplicate prescriptions.

It depends if the doctor sent 2 separate prescriptions or whether it was the same one but returned to the spine.

If the prescription was returned to the spine they won't be able to give it to you. If it was a second prescription then they will. It would have been very poor practice of them to issue a second prescription but could well have happened as emergency doctors are under a lot of pressure.

Your GP will be able to access the prescriptions and will obviously know if you have been given double the quantity of a controlled drug. It may well be recorded that you seek to obtain additional controlled drugs & in a similar situation in the future the out of hours emergency doctor would have to refuse to prescribe it to you & you would have to wait until your own doctor could see you.

I've never taken it or know anything about it. So after 8 days, or a few days before after the OP has run out of batch 1, she couldn't request another batch of 8 if she felt she needed them?

I get diazepam on repeat prescription.

It's the lowest level of controlled drug & widely prescribed.

no I wasn’t going to take double the amount just have it for longer if I need it

The first pharmacy probably haven’t realised that the prescription has been cancelled and a new one issued elsewhere. When they try to “claim” the prescription at the end of the month they will more than likely realise they have dispensed a cancelled prescription and inform your surgery. They also won’t be paid for it.

Ok but that isn't what happened here is it. If it's a repeat then you use the first lot then a month later get the next. Not two at the same time where one is a duplicate.

That's what I meant. Have double the amount and use it for longer potentially. Unless it's a repeat you're not meant to have it more than that one box.