Dispensing procedure standard operating procedures

Standard operating procedures have existed for the dispensing supply process in their current form since January 2005. They were put in place to ensure clinical governance of the dispensing procedure. Clinical governance is the term used in the NHS and private healthcare system to describe a systematic approach to maintaining and improving the quality of patient care. 

Figure 1.3 contains an example of a standard operating procedure for the professional check of a dispensed prescription form within a community pharmacy. Using this information (and the example in Figure 1.2) fill out the audit question document in Figure 1.4 for the audit of prescription form returns from the Prescription Pricing Division (PPD) (see Section 3.3.8) with the questions you would ask. 

This chapter has covered a number of examples of standard operating procedures and has shown how they are generated. Why not try making your own SOPs for your processes in dispensing classes Or if you undertake any work or vacation placements, try to identify other areas where SOPs would be useful. 

Figure 1.3 An example of a standard operating procedure for the professional check of a dispensed prescription form within a community pharmacy.

The successful performance of dispensing and compounding operations in a pharmacy depends on a thorough understanding of the principles of the prescription balance and strict adherence to the procedures of its care and use. Therefore, it is essential to learn proper weighing techniques, and to be conscious of the limitations of the balance to weigh certain quantities. All pharmacies are required to have a Class A prescription balance which meets the requirements of the National Bureau of Standards. It is based upon the principle of torsion. Some states may allow the use of a balance other than the Class A prescription balance, provided that their sensitivity requirement is six milligrams or less. 

Starting materials should be dispensed only by authorised persons, following a standard procedure which ensures that the correct marerials are accurately weighed or measured. Scales and measues with accuracy appropriate to the various quantities to be dispensed should be available. Each dispensing operation should be checked and the check recorded (see Clause 545). 

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