On the 8th January, 2015 the MHRA issued a press release relating to the closing down of websites that are offering falsified and unlicensed medicines. As Contract RPs, we work tirelessly to ensure that our clients do not, inadvertently, purchase or supply falsified medicines and nearly every one of them has questioned or shown concern that websites selling medicines are springing up all the time.
Of course, without customers these websites would not be able to exist, but for many reasons (time, nature of ailment, doctors’ appointment systems) self-treatment and online purchasing is very tempting and easy to do.
As more of us move towards the convenience of on-line purchasing, we need to be aware of the potential for ordering illegal, falsified and dangerous medicines, but how do you tell if the website you are ordering from is genuine?
Genuine on-line pharmacies are registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council. These pharmacies are required to meet strict standards and are regularly inspected. A list of registered pharmacies is easily accessed via the GPC website:
http://www.pharmacyregulation.org/registers
PCL have helped many, genuine, pharmacies to set up and register their on-line business. For further information, please contact us.