Description

Our Dispatching an Internet Pharmacy Order Standard Operating Procedure details how to safely distribute medication to patients from an online, internet-only pharmacy, below is a short summary of our downloadable package:

Dispatching an Internet Pharmacy Order Standard Operating Procedure

Purpose

• To allow the safe dispatch of pharmacy orders over the internet, applying the utmost care to patient safety and quality of service.
• To ensure the uninterrupted provision of essential services without patient contact.

Scope

This SOP covers all dispatches of items via an online pharmacy. 

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Procedure

1. Post final check.

At this stage, a pharmacist has completed the final check and packaged the item into a dispatch bag and sealed the item. The bag must be fully sealed as otherwise it may be tampered with. It is very important that when the final check by the pharmacist is complete that the bag is sealed and ready for dispatch.

2. Item dispatch.

The sealed item should be dispatched as per the order sheet. The order sheet will contain details about what type of dispatch is needed. There are many different types of postage, first-class, second class, recorded delivery. Make sure the method of dispatch correlates to the order itself. It is recommended that any POMs to be dispatched should be dispatched by recorded delivery as this avoids a large possibility for error.

3. Postal grouping.

Items should be placed in a Postal grouping sack. These sacks can be obtained from your local postal office. For best practice, plastic ties should be used to protect the contents from tampering. 

4. Dealing with returns.

Items that are designated as returns, should be picked up by an appropriate courier service and returned to the pharmacy. Any returned medicines should then be treated as clinical waste and disposed of appropriately.

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Known Risks

• Sending orders to the wrong patient.

Review Procedure

This SOP will be reviewed in the event that there are any changes in best practice concerning the delivery of medicines or in the event of staff changes. It will also be reviewed in the event of dispensing incidents. In the absence of any of these events, it will be reviewed yearly from the date of publication.