Medicine wastage bitterest pill to swallow, a Harrow GP has warned.
Dr Amol Kelshiker, chairman of Harrow Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), is appealing for people not to needlessly order repeat prescriptions or hoard medicine.
Medicine wastage cost the NHS £300 million last year and Dr Kelshiker is asking for patients to be aware of bottles building up in the medicine cabinet.
He said: “The CCG spent around £30 million on prescribing last year and we estimate around £1.1 million of that is gathering dust on people’s shelves or thrown away.”
Dr Kelshiker, who works at the Pinn Centre in Pinner, added: “Medicines go out-of-date or could be taken by someone who hasn’t been prescribed them so it is not a good idea to hold onto them. Any pharmacy will take them back.
“I’m just asking for people to be a bit for mindful and think about what they really need.”
An annual £300 million saving could pay for more than 11,000 community nurses, 100,000 knee replacements or nearly 20,000 more drug treatment course for breast cancer.
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