Bengaluru: Illegible prescriptions are the bane of medical profession. It can lead to wrong dispensation with disastrous results for the patient. In order to remedy this ailment, The Karnataka Medical Council (KMC) conveyed to all medical practitioners that they should follow a new set of rules that also include the format in which a prescription ought to be written.
These include the following:
* All medical practitioners should get their KMC registration number printed on their prescription papers compulsorily.
* All prescriptions should be written in Capital letters in legible handwriting.
However these guidelines have been followed more in the breach and this has forced patients to return empty handed from pharmacies.An official with the KMC said that the Council would soon write to the Drugs Control Department and request them to send a circular to all pharmacies asking them not to accept prescriptions if not written in capital letters.
“We had sent a circular to all doctors a month ago to follow the new norms framed by the Indian Medical Council. Since it is not being done, this measure will be taken,” he said.
Pharmacists view
Satish, pharmacist, Guru Pharma, pointed out that the Indian Medical Council had made it mandatory for doctors to write the prescriptions in capital letters only, but hardly anyone follows it.
“At times, when patients get treated at high-end hospitals, their discharge summary has the names of drugs in print and is clear. However, prescriptions, especially by doctors in clinics, are illegibly written,” he said and added that it is a tough task to decode what was scribbled. “Unlike other professions, even a little negligence can cost a person his life. Sometimes, we ourselves are unsure if medicines must be given or not in such circumstances,” he said. He said that this not only put chemists in a tough spot, but also left patients confused.
“We have seen prescriptions where even the dosage is not clearly mentioned, leaving patients confused,” Satish said. Jagadish, pharmacist, Green Apple Pharmacy, said that the situation was worse when there were two drugs with similar names. He said that sometimes, with no choice left, the pharmacy was forced to ask patients either to get the prescription re-written from the doctors or procure the drug from elsewhere.
