About
your Medical Records
You can help your GP and pharmacist by keeping
your own records of the medicines you are taking.
Telling your GP and pharmacist about the medicines
you are taking will help them to give you the
most appropriate advice and treatment. Before
starting a new medicine you should tell your
:
- GP about any non-prescription medicines you
are taking including supplements and herbal medicines.
- Pharmacist about any prescription and or non-prescription
medicines you are taking.
- GP, pharmacist or practice nurse immediately
if you think one or more medicines you are taking
is causing an unpleasant side effect.
Mixing medicines can occasionally reduce the
effectiveness of a particular medicine, or may
mean that you get too much of a particular ingredient.
CHIC has teamed up with the Doctor Patient Partnership
to produce some medicine cards you can use to
record your medicines. They are being distributed
through pharmacists and GPs in March/April 2002.
If you can't find the cards in your local surgery
or pharmacy you can request one by calling the
CHIC telephone line on 020 7404 7842.
As part of the campaign, CHIC and the DPP are
also producing posters to let people know how
they can go about seing copies of their medical
notes kept buy GPs.
Your GP may show you your records or they may
ask you to make a request in writing. You can
expect to pay the following :
- £10 for a copy of fully computerised
records
- No more than £50 for a copy of records
held manually
- £10 to view records. It costs nothing
to view records if they are held in manual form
and have been added to in the last 40 days prior
to your request.
The charges meet the time and administration
costs incurred by the surgeries.
If you have any concerns about the medicines
you are taking then talk to your pharmacist.
All pharmacists have an extensive, in-depth knowledge
of medicines and are well-placed to advise people
on the safety and effectiveness of prescription
and non-prescription medicines.
You can find more information about your medical records on the DPP website
at www.dpp.org
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