Important Patient Notice: Regarding Benzodiazepines
– Fear of flying
– Anxiety related to investigations such as MRI or CT scans
– Other phobic disorders
This decision has been made in line with national prescribing guidance. As a healthcare provider, we have a duty of care to offer safe, consistent, and evidence-based treatment for all our patients. For more information, please Click Here
Do you have a query about the medication you are on?
This might include questions such as:
– how does my medication work?
– are there any long term side effects?
– is my medication safe?
– can I drive on this medication?
– how should I take my medication?
– what if I forget a dose?
Visit the NHS Medicines Website – You can find the answers to all these questions in the NHS Medicines A-Z guide. This guide covers virtually every medicine which we prescribe at the Mattishall & Lenwade Practice.
Call our inhouse Dispensary Team – Our Dispensary Admin Team is here to support you with any medication-related queries. They co-issue repeat prescriptions, process hospital letters, and work closely with the attached pharmacy to help prepare your prescriptions. Whatever your concern, they’re here to help ensure you get the medication and support you need.
Speak with our clinical pharmacists – Our clinical pharmacists can also answer queries about your medication / prescriptions. Speak to reception who can book an appointment for you.
You can also log into your SystemOnline and send us a message. This will be triaged by our team.
Hospital‑initiated medications
If your medication has been started or recommended by the hospital, there are some important steps we must follow to keep you safe.
1. We need the hospital letter first
If the hospital has recommended a new medication, we cannot prescribe it until we receive a written clinic letter clearly stating:
– the exact medication name
– the dose
– how often you should take it.
This is because the GP who signs the prescription is legally responsible for it and must have full, accurate information.
2. Hospital letters can take 2–3 weeks to reach us
After your hospital appointment, it can take 2–3 weeks for the clinic letter to arrive at the Practice. We cannot speed this up, and we are not responsible for chasing hospital correspondence.
3. The hospital should provide the first supply
NHS England guidance states that when a new medication is needed after an outpatient appointment, the hospital should provide an initial supply (usually at least 7–14 days) so that there is no gap in treatment while the letter reaches your GP.
This applies to both NHS and private hospital providers.
(See NHS England guidance on responsibilities for prescribing between primary and secondary care:
https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2018/03/responsibility-prescribing-between-primary-secondary-care-v2.pdf)
4. If it’s urgent and we don’t have the letter
If you need an urgent prescription for a hospital‑recommended medication and we have not yet received the clinic letter, we may ask you to contact the hospital team so that they can:
– issue the initial prescription themselves, or
– send us the necessary written details urgently.
Until we have clear written information, we may not be able to prescribe safely.
Thank you for your understanding and for helping us to keep prescribing safe and appropriate.
Dispensary Information
For Mattishall please call 01362 858585 to speak to a member of staff with a medication query between 09:30 and 11:30 and 15:00 and 17:00 Monday to Friday.
For Lenwade please call 01603 871160 and request to speak to a member of dispensary staff during opening hours.
Patients should be aware that the line is often very busy before and after weekends and holiday periods.
Currently, prescriptions are ready for collection within 7 working days (excluding weekends and Bank Holidays).
Are you trying to chase a prescription?
Is it something we have prescribed? You can track your prescription using:
The NHS app – for more details on how to do this click here
SystmOnline – for more details on how to do this click here
Phone the surgery to speak to our dispensary (Monday – Friday 09:30 – 11:30 & 15:00 – 17:00)
Is it something the hospital has prescribed or asked us to prescribe from a letter?
Please note we cannot prescribe medication suggested by the hospital until we get a written letter stating the exact medication, dosage and frequency.
– It can take the hospital 2-3 weeks following on from your hospital appointment for the clinic letter to be sent to us (a timeframe often not appreciated by the hospital doctors)
– If you need an urgent medication following from a hospital review, it is hospital policy that to avoid delay they should prescribe an initial 2 week supply of the medication.
– If we do not have the hospital letter and it is an urgent prescription we may insist that the hospital team is contacted to provide the initial medication prescription
