EDX/20/1154
Date of prep: December 2020
Prescribing information and
adverse events reporting
For healthcare professionals only
EDX/20/1154
Date of prep: December 2020
Prescribing information and
adverse events reporting
For healthcare professionals only
The General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) has issued an improvement notice to Clear Chemist requiring it to take measures to rectify failures identified at an intelligence-led inspection.
The GPhC had previously taken the unusual decision to make a statement about Clear Chemist.
At an inspection on 5th October, GPhC inspectors identified that the pharmacy was not meeting some of the standards for registered pharmacies that provide the framework to ensure safe and effective care for patients and the public.
The inspectors found ‘serious system-wide failures in the governance and management of risk at the pharmacy and a lack of safeguarding’. The GPhC has said that this presents a risk to patient safety.
The inspectors considered the volume and type of medicines supplied, the age range and potential vulnerability of the patients, and the additional risks of working with prescribers based in the EEA and working outside UK regulatory oversight.
The improvement notice requires the pharmacy to put a number of measures in place to rectify the failures and meet the standards, including developing and putting in place a comprehensive risk assessment for the services they provide and updating their safeguarding policy and procedures. These measures will help to protect patient safety.
The improvements required are as follows:
The deadline for compliance was set as 18th November 2020.
Duncan Rudkin, Chief Executive of the GPhC, said:
“We know that people receiving medicines from Clear Chemist have been concerned about how our actions may affect them.
“We want to reassure everyone that we have not asked the pharmacy to stop supplying medicines to patients undergoing treatment for gender dysphoria. We have directed the pharmacy to make improvements to make sure that people receive medicines that are safe and effective for them.
“Our inspectors will continue to work with the superintendent pharmacist to make the improvements needed and to support continuity of care for the pharmacy’s patients.”
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