What should you know about emergency repeat prescription?

This is intended for medicine you already use, when your usual prescription or supply is unavailable or has run out. A clinician may check the medicine name, strength, dose, reason for treatment, allergies, other medicines, and when you last took it. The request may be declined or changed if the medicine needs a physical assessment, monitoring, or a new diagnosis. Controlled medicines, sedatives, and some high-risk treatments may require additional checks.

Contact your GP practice, prescribing service, or an urgent care service as soon as you realise the supply is ending. Have the medicine packaging, prescription details, identity information, and pharmacy contact ready. Tell the clinician how many doses remain and whether you have missed any. Do not double a dose to compensate, borrow someone else’s medicine, or stop a medicine abruptly unless a clinician tells you to. A pharmacist may explain what information the prescriber needs and where an approved prescription can be dispensed.

Seek urgent medical help if missed doses are causing severe symptoms, withdrawal symptoms, breathing difficulty, chest pain, confusion, a seizure, or a rapidly worsening condition. Call emergency services for collapse or severe breathing problems. If the medicine is for diabetes, epilepsy, heart rhythm, severe asthma, or another condition where interruption can quickly become dangerous, contact a clinician promptly rather than waiting for the next routine appointment.

Ask how much medicine can be supplied, whether you should continue the same dose, what to do after a missed dose, and how to arrange the regular prescription. Confirm whether monitoring or a review is due and which pharmacy can dispense the prescription.