Prescription Form Overprint Specifications

The prescription overprint specifications have been revised to incorporate overprint changes/ additions in the following areas. All textual changes are shown in red within the actual specifications:

• New nurse name terminology
• Safer management of controlled drug requirements
• Age and date of birth print format
• Patient NHS number reference
• Change to minimum font size for prescriber/initiative description
• Prescribed medication items printing requirements
• Revised prescription mockups

Note for Prison Prescribers

When overprinting prescriptions for discharged offenders the first line of the prison address must begin 'HMP'. This will allow the dispenser and the PPD to identify the prescription charge status.

GP System Prescription Overprint Specifications:

FP10SS
FP10MDA-SS

Hospital System Prescription Overprint Specifications:

FP10SS
FP10MDA-SS

Out of Hours Care (OOHC) Providers Non-FP10 Overprint Specifications:

FP10SS

Private CD System Prescription Overprint Specifications:

FP10PCDSS

Prescription Form Overprint Specifications

The PPA has produced these overprint specifications in conjunction with the Department of Health. The specifications describe the specific print requirements for prescription form and non-FP10 supply form overprinting that will allow prescribers to print prescriptions using GP/Pharmacy/OOHC, Hospital and private controlled drug (CD) prescribers IT systems.

The specifications support the 'GP System Supplier Guide - Nurse and Supplementary Prescribing', and 'Securing Proper Access to Medicines in the Out-of Hours Period - A Practical Guide for PCTs and Organised Providers'. The former describes the system requirements to support nurse and supplementary prescribing and the changes required to supporting drug databases. It also supports planned nurse and supplementary prescriber changes to the General Medical Practice Computer Systems - Requirements for Accreditation - RFA99. The latter document, available from www.out-of-hours.info, supports the implementation of recommendation 19 of the Report of the Independent Review of Out-of-Hours Care Raising Standards for Patients. New Partnerships in Out-of-Hours Care which reads:

'Other than in exceptional circumstances, patients should be able to receive the medication they need at the same time and in the same place as the out-of-hours consultation.'

The private CD prescribers specification supports the recommendations made as part of the Government's response to the Shipman Inquiry.

It is important that these specifications are followed to ensure that forms are consistently overprinted to a high standard. This is to enable the PPD prescription processing core functions to take place, within agreed timescales.

These processes are fundamental to the payment and budget management of significant numbers of professionals involved in front-line patient care. The processes also involve the provision of prescribing and dispensing information systems, which provide the basic building blocks for performance management within primary and secondary care. In addition processes are also in place to monitor the prescribing and dispensing of schedule 1, 2 and 3 CDs to support the DH project for safer management of CDs across the NHS and private sector

There are several requirements within the print specifications that are very specific as the data elements will be scanned and processed by the PPD using Intelligent Character Recognition (ICR) technology and interpreted automatically. Where the requirement is mandatory the word 'shall' is used and where the requirement is desirable the word 'should' is used.

In the context of the specifications, 'employed by' when referring to pharmacist prescribers is the term used to describe:

• Qualified pharmacist prescribers that have an agreed contract/prescribing arrangement with a practice and/or PCT.

GP Systems – FP10SS Specifications

Individual print specifications are available for the following primary care prescribers' prescription forms. The layout of the forms varies and is dependent on the prescriber type and prescribing organisation.

All of the specifications can be accessed using the links below:

Specification Key

A=Alpha, N=Numeric, X=Alphanumeric/space

GP Systems – FP10MDA-SS Specifications

Individual print specifications are available for the following primary care prescribers' prescription forms. The layout of the forms varies and is dependent on the prescriber type and prescribing organisation.

All of these specifications can be accessed using the links below:

Specification Key

A=Alpha, N=Numeric, X=Alphanumeric/space

Hospital Systems – FP10SS Specification

A print specifications is available for the following secondary care prescribers' prescription form.

Specification Key

A=Alpha, N=Numeric, X=Alphanumeric/space

Hospital Systems – FP10MDA-SS Specification

A print specification is available for the following secondary care prescribers' prescription form.

Specification Key

A=Alpha, N=Numeric, X=Alphanumeric/space

Out of Hours Care (OOHC) Providers - Non-FP10 Supply – FP10SS Overprint Specification

A print specification is available for the following Out of Hours Care - Non-FP10 supply form.

Specification Key

A=Alpha, N=Numeric, X=Alphanumeric/space

Private CD Systems - FP10PCDSS Overprint Specification

A print specification is available for the overprinting of the private CD prescription form - FP10PCDSS.

Specification Key

A=Alpha, N=Numeric, X=Alphanumeric/space