Coronavirus: medicine delivery services in Hong Kong unsupervised by pharmacists could expose patients to risks of taking wrong drugs, group warns
- Practising Pharmacists Association says it could be against the law if pharmacists did not provide explanations about the medicine delivered to patients
- Service providers may have to bear legal consequences if residents are harmed as a result of taking medication delivered without pharmacist supervision, it adds
The Practising Pharmacists Association issued the warning after a number of organisations and companies launched delivery services for those unable to obtain medicines from hospitals or clinics, such as Covid-19 patients, their close contacts and the elderly.
The association, which has also been providing such services since the fifth wave began, is seeking discussions with the government to allow not only paper but also electronic medical prescriptions.
It said the move could speed up delivery and allow them to serve more people in the event of a lockdown, where a few thousands requests a day were expected.
The group’s president Iris Chang Yee-man said it could be against the law if pharmacists did not provide explanations about the medicine delivered to patients, while service providers might have to bear legal consequences if residents were harmed as a result of taking medication delivered without the supervision of a pharmacist.
She said medicines were not general goods that could be casually delivered to patients by post, courier companies or volunteers.
“Medicine delivery service is actually a professional service provided by pharmacists. It is a part of the medicine dispensing process,” she said. “If the wrong medicine is given to patients, it could be poisonous.”