The General Medicines Council (GPhC) is currently reviewing 40 active fitness to practice (FtP) cases relating to online pharmacy activity, the regulator’s chief pharmacy officer has confirmed.
Speaking at the Pharmacy Show in Birmingham on 13 October 2024, Roz Gittins said the GPhC has had “over 400 FtP cases linked in some way to online activity” to date. He said that included “approximately 40 active cases.”
However, he added, “It was very difficult to determine whether these were truly online because there could be other things going on than just online activity.”
Mr Gittins referred to a Department of Professional Standards report published in September 2024, which concluded that the GPhC had “still taken too long to proceed with an FtP investigation”.
“We know we have a significant age group of people and we are working hard to resolve these cases, many of which are related to online activity,” she said. He added that there were “many reasons” behind the delay. Including legal issues that she could not elaborate on.
Mr Gittins said the “elderly” case was expected to be concluded “within the coming weeks and months.”
In his presentation to delegates, Gittins presented a slide explaining the regulator’s enforcement activities, showing that 68% of online pharmacies were found to meet all standards upon inspection.
This is lower than the overall pass rate for registered pharmacies, with 85% of registered pharmacies meeting all criteria at the time of inspection.
In April 2022, the Pharmaceutical Journal revealed that online pharmacies are eight times more likely to fail GPhC regulatory standards compared to brick-and-mortar pharmacies.
Commenting on the insights the GPhC gained after inspecting online pharmacies, Mr Gittins told participants: “Some of the clinical services[online pharmacies]provide are what we would describe as ‘transactional’. There is,” he said.
This means some online pharmacies are “prescribing large numbers of high-risk medications in an alarmingly short period of time,” she said.
Mr Gittins added that some online pharmacies have had issues with leadership and governance, and that “some organizations have deliberately sought to circumvent existing arrangements, for example by registering overseas”. .
Since January 2021, the healthcare regulator has been calling on the government to close regulatory loopholes that allow UK patients to access prescription drugs online from prescribers based overseas.
In evidence submitted to the Health and Social Care Select Committee in April 2021, the Care Quality Commission said that there were “current examples of deaths and serious harm caused by digital services delivered from outside England”. I warned you that there is.
In September 2024, the GPhC will consult on changes to its guidance for online pharmacies, requiring pharmacies to have “two-way communication” with patients before prescribing drugs used for weight loss, and additional safety measures will apply. Expanded list of things that should be done.
