Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick East, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 240: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the estimated number of visits to general practitioners in 2008 that arose from the administrative function of rewriting prescriptions issued to both medical card patients on their discharge from hospital and holders of the long-term illness card who have received a prescription from their hospital consultant; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18928/09]

Jan O'Sullivan (Limerick East, Labour)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 241: To ask the Minister for Health and Children the reason general practitioners have to carry out the administrative function of rewriting prescriptions issued to both medical card patients on their discharge from hospital and holders of the long-term illness card who have received a prescription from their hospital consultant; if she will take steps to eliminate such unnecessary visits to GPs; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [18929/09]

Mary Harney (Dublin Mid West, Progressive Democrats)
Link to this: Individually | In context

I propose to take Questions Nos. 240 and 241 together.

As hospital doctors do not have General Medical Services (GMS) contracts, prescriptions written by them for medical card holders are not reimbursable under the GMS scheme. Such prescriptions must be transcribed by the patient's GMS-contracted general practitioner to a GMS form, in line with the audit and governance procedures applying to the scheme. The prescription can then be dispensed by a pharmacy that holds a community pharmacy contract. Under emergency dispensing arrangements for patients who have been in-patients of Acute General Hospitals or who have attended the Accident/Emergency Departments of General Hospitals, GMS patients can obtain a short term supply of a hospital prescription from a community pharmacy, where it would not be possible or practical to contact their GP within a reasonable period.

People with specified conditions receive without charge, drugs, medicines and medical and surgical appliances, for the treatment of that condition, through the Long Term Illness Scheme (LTI). LTI patients are issued with a book which contains the type and quantity of the drugs or medicines required for their specified illness. In the event of their discharge from hospital after treatment for their primary condition, patients take their hospital prescription to their local Health Service Executive Office (HSE) to seek approval for its addition to their LTI book, in line with the audit and governance procedures applying to that scheme. Products for the treatment of illnesses other than their primary condition are available according to the patient's eligibility e.g medical card holder or under the Drugs Payment Scheme. Some people who are eligible for the Long Term Illness Scheme also hold a medical card, which means that they are entitled to access all their medications free of charge, rather than just those required for the treatment of their long term illness and therefore must return to their GP to have their prescription transcribed to a GMS form.

In line with clinical best practice it is considered worthwhile that patients have contact with their general practitioner after leaving hospital, establishing a valuable link between primary and secondary care services that might otherwise be less frequent. The estimated number of visits to general practitioners in 2008 to rewrite prescriptions issued on discharge from hospital is a service matter and has been referred to the HSE for direct reply.