Dispensing a Paper Prescription

Dispensing Paper Prescriptions (3:08)

To dispense a paper prescription:

  1. From the Pharmacy Manager Side Navigation Bar select Dispensary . The Dispensary screen displays:

  2. Complete the following sections:
    • Patient - Enter all or part of the patient name and press Enter on your keyboard, see Searching for a Patient for details.
    • Prescriber - Enter all or part of the prescriber’s name and press Enter on your keyboard, see Confirm the Prescriber for details.
  3. Enter the number of items in No Items and press Enter on your keyboard.
  4. The prescription default is FP10 in England, to change this, double click FP10 , and select from the prescription types offered.
    Note - In Wales the default is WP10 and in Scotland the default is GP10, double click to change as required.
  5. In Written as, enter all or part of the item name and press Enter on your keyboard. For example, if you are searching for Paracetamol 500mg tablets enter:

    • PARA - To display all items beginning with PARA display.

    • PARA 500 - To display all items beginning with PARA with a strength of 500 display.

    • PARA 500 TAB - To display all items beginning with PARA with a strength of 500 in tablet form display.

  6. Select the appropriate item and pack size from the list of medications offered.
    Training Tip - To change to a generic medication, press Ctrl + G on your keyboard and select from the list offered, or to change brand press Ctrl + B on your keyboard and select from the list offered. To bring up a list of different pack sizes press Ctrl + C on your keyboard.
  7. In Quantity, enter the prescribed quantity and press Enter on your keyboard. You can enter quantity in various ways, for example:

    • 28 - Prints one label with a quantity of 28.

    • 2p - Prints two labels, each for a single pack quantity.

    • 60,20,20 - Prints separate labels for each of the specified quantities.

    • 30x4 - Prints four labels of a quantity of 30.

  8. In Directions, enter the directions to print on the label. To enter directions, either:

    • Enter the directions in full, or

    • Use the pre-defined dose codes, for example, for 'One to be taken Daily' enter '1 d '. 

      Training Tip - Note the space after the 1 and the d.
    • Select Direction and the Find Direction screen displays, enter part of the description required and select Find. Select the direction required and select OK:

  9. Select Finish Item to add the next item, or Finish if this is the final item.
You can now endorse the prescription, or save it to endorse later, see Endorsing a Paper Prescription for details.

Item labels and, if configured, bag labels print for the items prescribed. To print extra labels from the Dispensary screen:

  • Additional item labels - Select Print - Extra Label, enter the number required and select OK.
  • Additional bag labels - Select Print - Bag Label.

Additional Useful Options

  • Patient Note - If there is a note on the patient record, Patient Note displays. To view the note, hover over the icon or double click on it.
    To set patient notes to display see Patient Notes for details.
  • Cancel - Select to cancel any record of this prescription.
  • Save to pending - Select to save the current prescription as Pending to allow a dispenser to return to it later.
  • Reprint a label - From Patient , find the patient required. Select the History tab, highlight the item required and select Reprint.
See Repeating an Item for details.
After dispensing you can view the Order Summary screen, see Order Summary for details.