Pack Size and Pack Labels

• On the Therapy Add screen, if you have ticked the P/Admin box at the top right because you will dispense the item, the Pack Size box automatically shows an appropriate pack size from the available standard packs, and if more than one, a picklist. You can bypass this automatic selection by either specifically entering a pack size, or if the quantity comes from a drug default with a preferred pack size.
• The selection arrow in Pack Size is enabled when P/Admin is checked. You can list all available pack sizes held on Gemscript and make a selection here for the pack you are dispensing. The number in Quantity should equal the total number (for example, of tablets) you are prescribing, either by your entering this manually or from the drug default (see Quantity, Preparation, Packs).

  Note - This only applies to an Acute Therapy Add screen. On a Repeat Master Add, you do not have access to the Pack Size field when adding a repeat master, but you can tick the P/Admin box if you know it will be dispensed later. Validation of the pack size will take place when you press OK and warnings may be issued (see below). When you come to print an issue, and if the P/Admin box has been ticked, then a Repeat Issue Add screen displays (before Print Therapy screen) where you can select a pack size, enter a batch number, and edit the patient's notes. Alternatively, you can right click on an issue line, Edit, and add the batch number to the Repeat Issue Update screen.

• When you come to print the prescription, this will automatically print a number of pack labels for each pack that makes up the prescribed quantity. For instance, if you have a Quantity of 56, and the pack size is 28, then two pack labels will be printed. (Drug labels will also be printed for each item prescribed).
• A Quantity of 60 and a pack size of 60 will print one pack label. A Quantity of 60 and a pack size of 30 will print two; and a pack size of 15 will print four.
• In other words, the number of pack labels printed is calculated by dividing the quantity by the pack size. An extra label will be printed for any remainder of this division. It is not possible for the user to influence this other than selection of pack size, or entering a quantity.
• If it is not possible to make up the exact prescribable quantity, then the combination of identical packs that leave a remainder equivalent to another pack size should be selected. If more than one combination satisfies this requirement then the combination with the smallest number of packs should be chosen. For instance, for a quantity of 22 tablets and a pack size of 10, three pack labels will be printed - two with a specified quantity of 10, and one label for the remaining 2 tablets.
• A prescription can only hold one identical pack size, which means, for example, a quantity of 45 is dispensed as 3 pack labels x 15 (where 15 is the pack size) though it may, in practice, be dispensed as 1 x 15 and 1 x 30. All this means is that too many pack labels have been printed, which is preferable to printing too few, and you can put the surplus label on one pack.
• When you finally press OK on the Therapy Add screen, if the pack size does not divide exactly into the quantity, then a warning is given:
• “Warning! The quantity entered (46) cannot be fulfilled with an exact number of packs of [15]. Do you wish to proceed?”
• If the selected pack size is marked as indivisible, then a stronger warning is given:
• “Warning! The quantity entered (46) cannot be fulfilled with an exact number of packs of [15]. It is not normally possible to split an individual pack of 15. Do you wish to proceed?”
• In both cases the default action is to proceed with the prescription. If you choose not to proceed, then you will be returned to the Add screen form with the focus in Quantity.
• Both warnings can be suppressed per user in Consultation - Options - Setup - General - Show packsize warning.
• The Drug Default maintenance screen also includes a Pack Size field. This allows dispensing practices preferentially to select a particular pack size for a particular drug. See Drug defaults: dosage, quantity.