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opioids

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CPE committee member calls for national pharmacy deprescribing service

Sukhi Basra said pharmacists were already deprescribing “informally” and should be funded for it.

07 Nov 2025 , 1 Min Article

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Figures show 16.5 million items for dependency-forming drugs prescribed in Q.1

The NHS Business Services Authority said 4.37 million patients in England were prescribed the medicines between April and June 2025.

15 Sep 2025 , 1 Min Article

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Drug misuse deaths in Scotland falls – but opioids the most common cause

The National Records of Scotland said the number of deaths fell to its lowest figure since 2017.

05 Sep 2025 , 1 Min Article

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Items prescribed for dependency-forming medicines fell from 2016-17 to 2024-25

The number of patients prescribed the medicines fell by 14 per cent, going from 8.1 million in 2016-17 to seven million in 2024-25.

31 Jul 2025 , 1 Min Article

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Almost 17m items for dependency-forming medicines prescribed in second quarter

Opioids were the most prescribed in quarter two of 2024-25 with 9.85 million items.

10 Dec 2024 , 1 Min Article

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Number of items prescribed for dependency-forming medicines in England falls

NHS Business Services Authority said 7.1 million patients were prescribed the medicines, a 13 per cent decrease from 2015-16.

05 Sep 2024 , 1 Min Article

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Suspended sentence for pharmacist who illegally sold prescription opioids

Belfast pharmacist who could not explain drug register discrepancies spared jail

02 Jul 2024 , 1 Min Article

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Online zopiclone sales contributed to veteran’s death, says coroner

Coroner issues damning criticism of companies selling medicines online.

19 Jun 2024 , 2 Min Article

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Gabapentinoid prescribing rises two per cent in a year

NHS BSA publishes latest report on dependency forming medicines in England

07 Sep 2023 , 1 Min Article

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Wicker Pharmacy saves two lives after taking naloxone training

Wicker Pharmacy is run by Martin Bennett (pictured) whose trainee pharmacy technician Joseph Ridge helped someone who collapsed in the street.

31 Aug 2023 , 1 Min Article

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RPS: Pharmacies can continue to reduce drug deaths in Scotland

RPS Scotland director Laura Wilson welcomed the “initial steps” the government took including making naloxone available in pharmacies.

25 Aug 2023 , 1 Min Article

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Don’t use opioids for lower back or neck pain

Opioids could even make patients’ pain worse in the medium or long-term, say researchers.

14 Aug 2023 , 3 Min Article

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Pharmacist who failed to spot falsified fentanyl prescriptions suspended

Pharmacist failed to question issues around a patient's prescriptions, says GPhC

08 Aug 2023 , 1 Min Article

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Watch out for symptoms of opioid overdose in heroin users

The MHRA urged pharmacists to make their teams aware that heroin users could be at risk because the drug could contain synthetic opioids.

28 Jul 2023 , 1 Min Article

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MHRA calls on naloxone providers to check for missing needles

Reports from France suggest some kits may be missing needles, says MHRA

11 Nov 2022 , 1 Min Article

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CPhO issues opioid substitution guidance ahead of bank holiday

'Make the care of the patient your first priority,' says David Webb

14 Sep 2022 , 1 Min Article

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