Christmas falling on a Monday this years means you’ll have even less time to buy emergency medication – heed the advice of this Shropshire pharmacist
Residents across Shropshire are being urged to try and reduce the number of emergency calls made to Shropdoc this Christmas by making sure they have ordered any prescriptions for medicine by the end of this week.
Every year Shropdoc receives thousands of calls over the festive period from residents requiring medical assistance.
But, Ian Swindell, pharmacist for Lunts Pharmacies which has premises in Shrewsbury, Craven Arms and Pontesbury, says a high proportion of these calls are related to people running out of medication and could be avoided if patients planned ahead.
He said: “Running out of important medication during the main Christmas period when many pharmacies are operating reduced hours can cause a lot of stress and worry for people.
“Quite often they don’t know what to do so call Shropdoc for advice.
“The number of these types of calls could be significantly reduced if people planned ahead.
“We have therefore been reminding all our regular customers to make sure they have ordered their prescriptions well in advance of Christmas and we would urge anyone needing extra medication over the festive period to have ordered their prescriptions no later than Wednesday, December 13.
“We appreciate it is a busy time of year and people have a lot on their mind, but we would urge people to have prescriptions at the top of their list – before presents and food shopping.”
Mr Swindell said it is also good idea to ensure your medicine cabinet is well stocked and be aware of the opening hours of your regular pharmacy.
And because Christmas Eve is a Sunday this year there will be a reduced service across the county for more days than usual, in many cases pharmacies will be closed on December 24, 25 and 26.
Lunts Pharmacies are operating usual opening hours and are closed on bank holidays.
Mr Swindell added: “Where possible we would ask people to assist any elderly relatives or friends to make sure they have enough medication or help them reorder if necessary before Wednesday’s deadline.”
