Chemist & Druggist articles from September 2003

Chemist & Druggist archives from September 2003

Control of entry regs in spotlight.
September 6, 2003... The 12 week consultaion period on how the Government intends to "reform and modernise" the control of entry regulations for pharmacies started on August 29 with the publication of a consultation document. The document follows the "balanced...

Verdict: still more clarity needed.
September 6, 2003... Reaction to the proposals has been far from supportive, with the pharmacy bodies wanting further clarifications and reassurances that patients' access to community pharmacy services will not be adversely affected. Chief concern for PSNC is...

Generics proposals outlined.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Key points include the proposal that prices at which pharmacy contractors are reimbursed would be linked to prices charged by manufacturers and information from manufacturers would be used to calculate the volume weighted average price. ...

Herbal Medicines Awareness Week.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... September 5-13 is Herbal Medicines Awareness Week, run by the National Institute of Medical Herbalists. As part of the week, NIMH is organising a series of "herb walks" to highlight the various medicinal plants growinjg in the UK's countryside...

DoH publishes generics reimbursement proposals.
September 6, 2003... The Department of Health has published its long awaited proposals for a new system of reimbursing cost and supply of generic medicines for the NHS (see box right). Following widespread consultation with the industry, the DoH claims the...

IT glitch sets back repeat dispensing pathfinders.
September 6, 2003... Sheffield's repeat dispensing pathfinder projects will only start this month if technological problems with GPs' computer systems can be resolved. Experts are currently working to redress an IT glitch that is preventing two PCTs' computer...

Scottish contractors paid #300 for costs inquiries.
September 6, 2003... Scottish contractors will be paid #300 for completing two separate inquiries into discounts and service costs. Scottish Pharmaceutical General Council has secured the payment from the Scottish Executive for pharmacies, who will be selected...

Guide to standard operating procedures.
September 6, 2003... The NPA is launching its Guide to Standard Operating Procedures, a copy of which is available free to each NPA pharmacy that registers. NPA members will receive the form to register with their issue of the Supplement and the packs will be...

Cannabis goes Dutch.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Dutch pharmacies are now stocking medicinal cannabis. A spokeswoman for the Royal Dutch Pharmacists Association said that Dutch pharmacists are happy about supplying medicinal cannabis because it means a move away from the "dismal solution"...

Contract update.
September 6, 2003... PSNC's weekly update on the new pharmacy contract. The new GMS contract and how it might interact with the new pharmacy contract. The Department of Health, the NHS Confederation and the General Practice Committee of the BMA have...

PPRS is up for discussion again.
September 6, 2003... Health Minister Lord Warner has launched a discussion paper on the Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme. The current five-year agreement ends in September 2004 and negotiations with the pharmaceutical industry about a replacement for the...

WTO agrees cheap drugs deal for developing nations.
September 6, 2003... World Trade Organisation member governments have agreed legal changes to make it easier for poorer countries to import cheaper generics made under compulsory licensing if they are unable to manufacture the medicines themselves. "The final...

Provalis turnover boosted.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Healthcare group Provalis has announced year end results showing a leap in group turnover of 49 per cent to #14 million in 2003, driven by Glycosal sales in the USA and Diclomax in the UK. Gross profit was #7.7m, an increase of #2.4m over...

Swains price list online.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Swains has launched an online version of its price list enabling retailers to obtain the prices and information for photographic equipment and accessories. The website at www.swains.co.uk allows retailers who have already registered for...

Phoenix depot under way.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Phoenix is at work on its new warehouse at Birmingham Hams Hall, to which all Stirchley customers will be transferred on its completion. Once operational, the depot will be 64 per cent automated and will also provide automatic label attachments...

Almus to increase its product line by next year.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Pharmaceutical supplier Almus plans to increase its products from 35 to 130 lines by mid 2004 and forecasts by then the brand will be worth over #50 million per year. Distributed exclusively by UniChem and OTC Direct, Almus currently has a...

Animal activists banned from drug company premises.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... The High Court has banned animal rights activists from demonstrating outside drug companies and the homes of senior employees, by enforcing exclusion zones. Seven UK-based Japanese pharmaceutical companies and their staff, all customers of...

Reckitt ups dividend.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Health and household goods manufacturer Reckitt Benckiser has seen its first half year net revenues grow by 4 per cent to #1,834 million. Operating profit increased by 9 per cent in H1 to #280m. The company has increased its interim...

Bayer fills posts online.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Bayer HealthCare has used its dedicated jobs website to give its recruitment a boost. In the first four months of the site being operational, www.jobs.bayer.co.uk attracted over 36,000 visitors. There were 76 applicants to advertised...

Letter: Another view on appliance supply.(Letter to the Editor)
September 6, 2003... The British Healthcare Trades Association is the UK's largest healthcare body representing over 350 companies, including some 90 per cent of the dispensing appliance contractors. As director-general of the BHTA, I would welcome the opportunity...

PAGB PERSPECTIVE: The case for advertising.
September 6, 2003... The emergency supply system is something to shout about, says Sheila Kelly, director of the Proprietary Association of Great Britain "The regulations which prohibit advertising OTC medicines for conditions such as heart disease will be...

Gillian Hawksworth returns.
September 6, 2003... Gillian Hawksworth returned to her alma mater recently, the University of Bradford, in her official capacity as president of the RPSGB. Dr Hawkworth studied pharmacy at Bradford in the 1970s, and returned to complete her PhD in the 1990s. She...

Comment from the Editor.
September 6, 2003... Two more significant documents for pharmacy have been published this week. Both could benefit from being more detailed. Although the consultation paper on control of entry contains few surprises, it has done little to address the concerns...

YOUR VIEWS: Let's get the IT agenda moving again.
September 6, 2003... The DoH's announcement that community pharmacy will be connected to NHSNet and will be able to feed into and access the electronic record is good news, says Geoff Mackay, AAH Pharmaceuticals' customer IT and new product development manager ...

Getting the message across.
September 6, 2003... A prescription for 15 diazepam 5mg tablets on a Sunday rota normally suggests some personal crisis or family trauma. The patient's husband, a genial man in his late 50s, wanted to know if "diazepam was mild". His wife, he said, was not happy...

Three wasted years.
September 6, 2003... I have always dreamt of being fully involved in providing pharmaceutical health services to the community, not through grudging acceptance from GP's, but because community pharmacy is the best place for those services to be provided. What has...

Taste is the feminine of genius.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... It is amazing how statistics can be twisted to match marketing needs. The relationship between cranberry flavour and cystitis shows that two thirds of women link cranberries with a healthy urinary tract (TNS data, August 2003). So what...

Managing the paperwork better.
September 6, 2003... Dotty has always despaired of my filing system which most times resembles the aftermath of a hurricane. Paper everywhere and I am the only one who claims to know where anything is. But her method of tidying is no better. A massive pile of paper...

PHARMACY UPDATE: Fighting fungi.
September 6, 2003... In his second article on fungal skin infections, Dr Mike Wyndham describes the appearance and treatment of dermatophytes and yeasts Objectives * To recognise the signs and symptoms of fungal infections * To be aware of differential...

Don't hold your breath for inhaler.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... The likelihood of diabetes patients using an inhaler rather than a needle to deliver their daily insulin is still a long way off, say scientists. In a review of the most recent literature on inhaled insulin studies, scientists say it needs...

All heart patients to gain from using Amias.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Amias (candesartan) is more than just a make-do alternative for patients with an ACE-inhibitor dry cough - it is beneficial in its own right, claim researchers from a heart failure trial. For those who do not suffer from the dry cough...

Rethinking constipation.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Behavioural treatment is an option for chronic constipation, says Professor Michael Kamm, gastroenterology professor at St Mark's Hospital, Harrow. Some patients who are not responding to laxatives may require behavioural therapy, which...

Red wine can help combat effects of cigarette smoke.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Two glasses of red wine can stave off the effects of smoking one cigarette - but that's no excuse not to give up, say researchers. Moreover, it's not the alcohol that has the protective effect, the scientists say, but another compound found...

Losartan now for stroke.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Losartan is now licensed to reduce the risk of stroke in hypertensive patients with left ventricular hyperthrophy. A study found it reduced the risk by 25 per cent. However, the drug is not licensed for this indication in black patients. ...

Flucloxacillin recall.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... The MHRA issued a drug recall on August 28 for certain Generics (UK) branded flucloxacillin 500mg capsule blister packs. Tests have shown some products may not meet their shelf-life expectations. The products were manufactured between October...

MediSense clarification.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... MediSense has asked C&D to point out that its Optium blood glucose test strips were discontinued from September 1, not the end of September. Prescriptions will be reimbursed for three months, until November 30. For more information:...

Something to suck on from Robitussin.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Wyeth Consumer Healthcare is expanding the Robitussin range with `P' category soft pastilles to relieve a dry, tickly cough. Robitussin Soft Pastilles for Dry Coughs contain dextromethorphan hydrobromide 7.5mg - two pastilles for an adult...

`Morning after' relief on the go.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Bayer Consumer Care is expanding the Alka Seltzer range with an over- indulgence remedy that can be taken without water. Alka Rapid Crystals are sachets of citrus flavoured granules containing aspirin 500mg. The product is designed to...

Wind down with herbal remedy.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... GlaxoSmithKline Consumer Healthcare is launching a herbal remedy designed to help people relax in the evening. Unwind Herbal Nytol contains valerian, wild lettuce and hops. The remedy is aimed at people who experience lifestyle stress...

Hear, hear.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Just published in the Family Doctor series is Understanding Deafness & Tinnitus, written by Professor Tony Wright and published with The British Medical Association. The book looks at the structure of the ear and how it works and describes...

Liquorice gum gives quitters something to chew on.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Novartis Consumer Health is launching a liquorice-flavoured coated nictotine replacement gum in the Nicotinell range. The liquorice variant will be available in 2mg and 4mg strengths and pack sizes of 24 and 96. Retail prices will be the...

Anti-ageing facial cream claims a `botox effect'.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... An anti-ageing cream which claims to relax the muscles in the face is being launched by CAT Industries in the SkinDoctors range. Relaxaderm-Btx has been developed to provide a "botox-effect" cream that "relaxes underlying muscles and...

Homoeopathic hangover relief.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Nelsonbach is adding Nux Vomica to the Nelson's formulated tablet range which is designed to appeal to consumers who are new to homoeopathy. Nux Vomica, derived from the seeds of the Strychnos nux vomica tree, claims to provide symptomatic...

Bodyform freshens up.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... SCA Hygiene has introduced a new product grouping into the Bodyform pantyliner range. The Bodyform Freshness Everyday line is being launched to respond to the demands of active women and help them to stay fresh all day. To help make...

SCA relaunch for the three Tenas.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... SCA Hygiene is relaunching three products in the Tena bladder weakness range to help attract new users to the incontinence category. Tena Lady Mini Plus (formerly Mini Long) features a larger fixation area and new edge sealing for improved...

Sensodyne plays it cool.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Sensodyne Total Care Extra Fresh will be on national TV this month in a #1.7 million campaign. On air for three weeks from September 8, the new commercial emphasises the extra fresh taste of the toothpaste, which is the newest addition to...

American-style pleasure and passion from Trojan.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Carter Products will introduce a well-established US condom brand into UK pharmacies on October 1. The Trojan range comprises five different condoms with a design focus on pleasure and passion. `Her Pleasure' has a double twist design...

SKINCARE: Filling the gaps.
September 6, 2003... More pharmacist input into skin conditions could have a major impact on patient care, says Peter Lapsley, chief executive, Skin Care Campaign The recent All-Party Parliamentary Group on Skin's inquiry into The impact of skin diseases on...

SKINCARE: Promotional material for Exorex.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Latest promotional material for Exorex includes window display material, a shelf unit, showcards and a laminated guide. The literature highlights that there is full range of products to help wash, treat and moisture skin in psoriasis. ...

SKINCARE: Pharmacies as problem solvers.
September 6, 2003... In skincare, it seems that pharmacies take over when a condition becomes a problem. Emollients are key to the treatment of dry skin conditions such as eczema, so pharmacies dominate this sector, whereas for oily spot-prone skin, consumers tend...

SKINCARE: A feel for feet.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... A survey by Passion for Life Healthcare found that most people (64 per cent) spend the most time caring for teeth or hair, while only 19 per cent spend a lot of time caring for feet. Only 20 per cent of respondents had ever visited a...

SKINCARE: Websites for skin problems.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... www.eczema.org The National Eczema Society's website. Its `product shelves' describe Balneum and Eucerin under `cleansing and bathing' and E45, Eucerin, Cetraben and Proderm Eczema under `emollients', although the NES stipulates that...

SKINCARE: Athlete's foot.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Novartis Consumer Health, in association with the Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists, has produced a poster helping lay people identify the common symptoms of athlete's foot so they can treat the condition quickly and help prevent...

SKINCARE: The herbal way.
September 6, 2003... Herbs used to treat skin conditions include: * Chickweed - an emollient that helps speed renewal of skin tissue. * Clivers - known as an "alterative" (that is, favourably altering the system). Used in mild psoriasis. * Echinacea -...

OPEN SHOP: The car's still the star.
September 6, 2003... The Government's plans to allow more pharmacies will impact on town centre property portfolios. So does the future depend on the car, asks John Lockwood, author of the Lockwood Survey 2002 The car had a major influence on urban development...

Baxter Healthcare - Appointment.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... The National Institute for Clinical Excellence has announced that its corporate affairs director, Anne-Toni Rodgers, is moving to Baxter Healthcare as director, government affairs and public policy, from November. Ms Rodgers has been with NICE...

Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency - Appointment.
September 6, 2003... Professor Kent Woods has been appointed the first chief executive of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. He will take up his new position on January 1, 2004. Currently professor of therapeutics at the University of...

Wilex - Appointment.(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... Former Oxford GlycoSciences chief executive and Bayer Pharmaceutical division president David Ebsworth has been elected chairman of Munich- based biopharmaceutical company Wilex's supervisory board. Dr Jeremy Reffin, of Apex Partners, and...

Putting the fun into funerals.
September 6, 2003... A Cambridge pharmacist's final request - for his funeral cortege to travel at 70mph - has been fulfilled, according to reports in the Cambridge News. John Palmer, who ran a pharmacy in Mill Road, Cambridge, for nearly 50 years, died aged...

Plenty of groom for improvement!
September 6, 2003... Men are revolting. You knew that - but now there's proof. Research released last week shows that one in seven men leave the house and go to work without bothering to have a wash. No doubt this is the reason why men get ready to go out more...

Coughing up the readies?(Brief Article)
September 6, 2003... We may have come up with the spark of an idea, but we never followed it through... Back during the trial of the major, the cough and the Who Wants To Be A Millionaire? televisual entertainment, we suggested here (C&D, March 22, p38) that...

150 years in the business.
September 6, 2003... Celebrating 150 years of service this year is the James family, whose pharmacy in Cheltenham was established in 1853 by Joseph James. This year is also the silver anniversary of the pharmacy being at its present site in St George's Road. ...

RPSGB produces FAQ fact sheets.(Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... The Royal Pharmaceutical Society has produced a series of fact sheets for pharmacists covering areas of practice that are frequently the subject of queries to its legal and ethical information service. The 12 fact sheets, which are...

Concerns may force further SGM.(special general meeting of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain )
September 13, 2003... Pharmacists opposed to the Royal Pharmaceutical Society's modernisation agenda say they have not ruled out a further special general meeting of the RPSGB if their concerns are not addressed. Save Our Society campaigners Mark Koziol, Graham...

New edition of Guide.
September 13, 2003... The 23rd edition of the Chemist & Druggist Guide to OTC Medicines & Diagnostics is published with this week's issue of C&D. Published every six months, the Guide has been revised with chapters grouped together in category related sections....

Efexor is not for kids.(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Healthcare professionals in the UK are being reminded that Efexor (venlafaxine) is not suitable for use in children under 18 in the current issue of Current Problems in Pharmacovigilance. Doctors in the USA have already received a letter...

Branch reps vow further action on funding cuts.(Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain pharmacists)
September 13, 2003... Pharmacists are vowing to continue lobbying on the issue of branch funding at the next branch representatives meeting in light of what they consider to be an unsatisfactory response from Council to their original concerns. Earlier this...

Don't bin your BNFs.(AAH Pharmaceuticals collecting editions of BNF )(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... AAH Pharmaceuticals will be collecting copies of the 44th (green) and 45th (cerise) editions of the BNF from pharmacies in the week prior to November 10 for PharmAid's local reps to distribute to healthcare professionals in the developing...

Pharmacy Update.(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Pharmacy Update registrants who entered answers for module 1279 prior to 10am on September 8 may have had their scores misrepresented due to a technical error. All such scores have been cleared and registrants should now re-enter answers to...

New RPSGB director.(Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain elects Rob Darracott)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Rob Darracott, a former C&D news editor, is the RPSGB's new corporate and strategic development director. In this new position, Rob will form the corporate strategy to support the Society's new ways of working, dealing with corporate and...

Coventry's pharmacists pass health scrutiny test.
September 13, 2003... One of the first local councils in the country to use a new legal power to inspect the work of NHS bodies and pharmaceutical services has highlighted the importance of pharmacists to the health of its residents. Using powers prescribed by...

Welsh health inequality scheme gets thumbs up.(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... A #150,000 pilot scheme to address health inequalities in Wales was launched this week by Jane Hutt, Wales's minister for health. The scheme is being piloted in three local health board areas - Denbighshire, Camarthenshire and Cardiff. It...

Contract update.(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... PSNC's weekly update on the new pharmacy contract. What are the details of `essential services' in the proposed structure of the new contract? Dispensing: supply of medicine or appliance; advice to patient about the medicines being...

Employee defence group launched.(Pharmacists' Defense Association )(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Defending the interests of employees and locums is the aim of the Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA), which launches next week at the British Pharmaceutical Conference. Positioned as a free, add-on service to pharmacists insured with...

University of Bradford award.(Marian Reilly wins Johnson and Johnson competition)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Marian Reilly, a pharmacy student at the University of Bradford, has won this year's Johnson&Johnson.MSD Patient Counselling Competition. Pharmacy departments in universities across the UK were invited to enter the annual competition, which...

Roche CoaguChek recall.(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Roche is recalling lot 583 of its CoaguChek PT test strips (12 strip pack) due to an increased risk of falsely high INR results. The medical device alert from the MHRA has requested pharmacists to: * identify patients who have been...

Platinum Design Awards.(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Have you redeveloped your pharmacy since January 2002? Would you like to win the UK's most prestigious pharmacy design Award - and the top #2,500 prize? There's also a special trophy for best entry from a multiple pharmacy business. ...

Bayer seeks GSL for Canestan Combi.(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Bayer has applied to the Medicine and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency for a reclassification of Canestan Combi from P to GSL. Bayer's rationale for the ARM11 reclassification of its Canestan Combi (clotrimazole pessary 500mg and...

Zimmer seeking backbone.(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Zimmer's #1.96 billion acquisition of hip and knee manufacturer Centrepulse has not sated the Swiss orthopaedics specialist, which is now on the lookout for takeover targets in the spinal surgery sector. With some 120 small companies in the...

Rowlands' shelf barkers.(category advice barkers on displays)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Rowlands has introduced category advice barkers to enhance the display of products for specific complaints such as hayfever and allergies. The CABs also carry `tick' stickers for certain GSL products, urging patients to look out for products...

Bankruptcy hotline.(crack down on directors and undischarged bankrupts )(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... The Government is cracking down on dodgy directors and undischarged bankrupts who deliberately flout disqualification orders by urging members of the public to call a 24-hour hotline 0845 6013546 if they believe anyone is breaching a...

New Jencons catalogue.(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Jencons-PLS has a new edition of its directory of laboratory and capital equipment, consumables and disposables. Fifty per cent of all the products listed are included for the first time. For a copy e-mail marketing@jencons.co.uk. ...

Report says people trust branded OTC drugs more.
September 13, 2003... Consumers are willing to pay up to eight times more for branded OTC medicines because they trust them more, a report by the Consumers Association has found. Tim Young, author of the report in the September issue of Which? magazine, said:...

Mawdsleys' helping hand.(Prestwich Pharmacy moves with help of Mawdsleys)(Brief Article)
September 13, 2003... Prestwich Pharmacy, near Bury, has moved with the help of Mawdsleys, which supplied a van, a driver and 300 boxes. Director Fin McCaul has worked in the pharmacy in the Longfield Centre for the past 15 years, but the centre is now being...