Sale of medicines

I have recently obtained a copy of the Medicines Act 2002.

Section 79 categorically states that it will be possible to sell medicinal products from premises other than a pharmacy and that medicinal products may be sold by a person other than a pharmacist.

It is to my understanding that with this Bill, the government is encouraging self-medication. These proposed changes, however, will bring about a serious risk to patient safety. In order to self-medicate, the patient should have access to a healthcare specialist at the time of purchase.

Self selection on medicinal products is not an option when patients do not understand the dangers of mixing prescription and over-the-counter medications. Every day pharmacists intervene in the sale of medicines by providing advice on their safe use. Allowing a free for all policy for medicines will only mean more accidental overdoses and dangerous interactions which cannot possibly be in anyone's best interest.

A classic example of the chaos that can ensue was in the case of Mandanol in the UK. Mandanol is a pharmaceutical preparation containing paracetamol. A few years ago batches of Mandanol were found to be contaminated with Aspirin which could have had serious consequences if administered to children under the age of 12.

In order to recall them the manufacturer was forced to place advertisements in national newspapers to try and reach the shopkeepers. This was a highly unsatisfactory way of trying to recall a product and it is likely that many packs of the contaminated products were never withdrawn.