Pharmacist Medication Reviews

Strathpeffer Medical Practice is please to be able to offer medication review appointments with our Practice Pharmacist Calum Murray.

Why are medicine reviews needed?

A medication review is a meeting to talk about your medicines which should be reviewed regularly (once per year) to check that they are right for you. When you are
first prescribed a medicine, your doctor, pharmacist and/or nurse checks that it is the best medicine for you. However, things can change, for example:

• You might have developed a side effect from the medicine.
• Your health might have changed, such as developing a long-term condition.
• You might have started taking other additional medicines.
• The guidelines for treating your condition might have changed.
• You may be taking a large number of medications (known as “Polypharmacy”).
• A medication you are on may be no longer essential for your health day today.

All of these factors can affect whether a medicine remains the best choice for you.

What happens at a medicine review?

The pharmacist will ask you some questions and also look at your medical record; this will allow them to check you are on the medication which is right for you. They
may also do some basic examinations if required e.g. blood pressure check. The review will be between 15 and 30 minutes long. You will have the chance to ask
any questions or raise any concerns you have about your medicines. The doctor or pharmacist may suggest some changes to your medicines. They will
explain these and why the change will benefit you. These changes may include: a change to a new or different version of a medicine, changing the dose, changing the
time of day you take your medicine or stopping a medicine.

Questions you may want to ask

If you and your doctor/ pharmacist decide that one or more of your medicines should change, you may wish to ask some of the following questions:

• What is the medicine for?
• How and when do I take it and for how long?
• Are there any side-effects?
• What should I do if I become ill while taking this medicine?
• Do I need regular check-ups once I start this medication?