Source · Select Committees · Health and Social Care Committee
Recommendation 5
5
Deferred
Review the effectiveness of Serious Shortage Protocols, focusing on timing and administrative burden.
Recommendation
We recommend that the Government reviews the effectiveness of Serious Shortage Protocols, with a focus on their timing and their administrative burden. (Paragraph 49) 44 Pharmacy
Government Response Summary
The government discusses the role of National Patient Safety Alerts and Medicine Supply Notifications in managing shortages, but does not address the specific recommendation to review the effectiveness, timing, or administrative burden of Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs).
Government Response
Deferred
HM Government
Deferred
National Patient Safety Alerts (NPSAs) apply to all prescribers. The government expects providers of healthcare services and those with responsibility for prescribing to take appropriate account of national guidance. Professional regulators have issued joint statements (Joint statement on meeting regulatory standards during periods of global or national shortage of medicines | General Pharmaceutical Council (pharmacyregulation.org) Joint statement on meeting regulatory standards during periods of global or national shortage of medicines – an update | General Pharmaceutical Council (pharmacyregulation.org) making clear that all prescribers, regardless of employer, should take into account NPSAs and other public health considerations when making prescribing decisions. The General Medical Council deems Medicine Supply Notifications, i.e., national advice to healthcare professionals on management options during a shortage, as national guidance and expects their members – who may work in the NHS and / or the private sector – to follow them.