When to use a SCR

There are a number of scenarios when it would be deemed suitable to access a patient’s SCR in a community pharmacy (see Table 1).

Benefits of using SCRs

Improved patient safety

Timely access to accurate patient information:

• Supports the provision of safer and more informed advice
• Improves the decision-making process and prescribing accuracy
• Helps identify potential prescribing errors and so reduces patient harm which, in turn, reduces hospital admissions
• Ensures that dispensed medicines are clinically appropriate.

Improved efficiency of patient care

• Instant access to clinical information reduces the time, effort and resources required to obtain medicines information from the patient’s GP practice via phone calls or faxes
• Access to patient information allows pharmacy professionals to make quicker decisions, meaning less delay to patient care and more timely decisions
• More time invested in direct patient care.

Improved effectiveness of patient care

• Supports the delivery of quicker, more efficient care to patients
• Reduces patients’ need to visit multiple care settings
• Fewer delays to patient care means improved convenience for patients
• Enables access to essential medicines information at weekends and out-of-hours when GP practices are closed
• Enables quicker access to urgent medicines
• Supports a seven-day service and increases confidence in the profession
• Improves the patient experience.