The Guildford and Waverley Joint Formulary

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The Joint Formulary has been developed with the aim to help promote safe, effective, and economic prescribing in primary and secondary care, across the local health economy, and to provide guidance on locally recommended drug decisions.

We limit the range of medicines included in the Formulary and promote the use of generic medicines where appropriate:

  • Enhances safety through familiarity with the medicines in use in the hospital by all staff involved in the prescribing, dispensing and administration of medicines.

  • Ensures efficient use of NHS resources.

Ensures efficient use of limited storage space both within the hospital pharmacies and on the wards, enhances good stock control and reduces the pharmacy stock holding.

Use of the Joint Formulary will also help to ensure seamless prescribing for patients between Primary and Secondary Care, thereby reducing the confusion and possible errors that can happen when medications are changed.

The Joint Formulary is an evolving and dynamic document and it is regularly reviewed and updated.

It is applicable to all prescribers working within primary care or hospitals covered by the Guildford and Waverley CCG footprint.

 

Development of the Formulary:

To access the website please click here.

The Joint Formulary has been produced in collaboration with Guildford and Waverley CCG and The Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust.

The Formulary has been drawn up following full and wide consultation with consultant medical staff, senior pharmacists and other interested parties.

It has been approved by the Drugs & Therapeutics Committee at the Royal Surrey NHS Foundation Trust and Guildford & Waverley Medicines Optimisation Group within the CCG.

The most up to date version will be accessible and maintained in an electronic format and updates will be made following these meetings. 

How should the Formulary be used?

The Formulary is arranged in BNF order and consists of a list of treatment recommendations in each section, with supporting clinical guidance where appropriate.

Unlicensed drugs and preparations approved for use are included in the most relevant section.

First, second, and occasionally third line drugs are indicated where appropriate.

First line drugs should be used unless there is a contraindication; the patient has suffered an adverse effect, or has not responded to the first line drug.

The Formulary is not intended to replace the British National Formulary (BNF) or another suitable reference e.g. NICE Clinical Knowledge Summaries (CKS) and these should be referred to for information on licensed indications, contraindications, cautions, side-effects, interactions and dosage.

The prescriber should always ensure they have the expertise to prescribe an agent before making a selection.

In its guidelines on responsibility for prescribing between hospitals and general practitioners, the Department of Health has advised that legal responsibility for prescribing lies with the doctor who signs the prescription.

The Joint Formulary includes all the medicines currently approved for local use:

Where medicines are not listed or are non-formulary, a new drug application form will need to be completed in order for the drug to be considered for Formulary approval.

Where there is an urgent need for a non-formulary medicine for a specific patient, refer to your individual organisations for advice regarding the process to be followed:

  • The Pharmacy department within secondary care

  • Guildford & Waverley CCG Medicines Management Teams in primary care

Does the Formulary apply to outpatient prescribing including referrals to GPs?

Yes it does, as a Joint Formulary it is our aim to promote safe, evidence-based, cost effective prescribing across the local health economy.

Who is the Formulary for?

The Joint Formulary is aimed at healthcare professionals.

Members of the public seeking advice on medicine-related matters are encouraged to speak with their GP, pharmacist or nurse or the Guildford and Waverley CCG medicine management team.