Prescriptions Information

This is the quickest, easiest and safest way to order your prescriptions.

Click HERE to order your repeat prescriptions online. 

You will need Username and Password to log in. 

These can be obtained by registering for online services.

You can also order repeat prescriptions in the following ways:

SystmConnect - click HERE and submit a Medication request.

In person - drop your repeat slip off at reception having clearly marked the required items.

By post - send it to us with a stamped addressed envelope if you want it posted back to you.

Please allow two full working days for prescriptions to be processed and remember to take weekends and bank holidays into account.

Please note that we DO NOT accept telephone request for prescriptions.

Our practice is set up for the electronic prescription service.

This means that for most patients, we can send your electronic prescriptions to your chosen pharmacy directly, saving you having to come down to the surgery.

To set up your nominated pharmacy, please contact reception.

Garlicks Chemist 01494 784664

Opening hours:

Monday - Friday: 09:00 - 13:00 & 14:00 - 18:00 

Weekend: Closed

Boots 01494 782966

FMY Chemists 01494 782866

Chess Pharmacy 01494 782968

Chesham Pharmacy 01494 668422

Patients on repeat medications will be asked to have a review at least once a year.

This may be with a GP or the clinical pharmacist who will call you.

Please ensure that you book an appropriate appointment to avoid unnecessary delays to further prescriptions.

If you have a query regarding your medication, please click HERE and submit a Medication request.

The NHS prescription charge is a flat-rate amount which successive Governments have thought it reasonable to charge for those who can afford to pay for their medicines. 

Extensive exemption and remission arrangements protect those likely to have difficulty in paying charges.

Click here to find out who can get free prescriptons.

If you are on extensive medications, you can save money with a prescripton prepayment certificate (PPC). Click here for more information.

Water Meadow Surgery has decided to stop prescribing a number of items on an NHS prescription that can be obtained ‘over the counter’ from a pharmacy.

This is not a decision we have taken lightly, but the fact is, NHS prescribing budgets need to be controlled.

Last year in Bucks alone £2million was spent on these medicines. This is money that NHS Buckinghamshire could use effectively to help patients with conditions such as cancer or heart disease.

You can buy these products cheaply and easily from pharmacies, shops and supermarkets.

Pharmacists are fully qualified to provide advice on these medicines so you don’t need to see a doctor.

These items include:

• Painkillers for minor aches and pains
• Hay fever preparations
• Cough and cold preparations
• Tonics and health supplements
• Treatments for short term constipation or diarrhoea
• Creams, gels and tubigrip for sports injuries and sprains
• Anti-perspirants
• Headlice lotions and shampoos
• Threadworm tablets
• Creams for bruising and varicose veins
• Lozenges, throat sprays, mouthwashes and gargles
• Treatments for mild acne
• Ear wax removers
• Athlete's foot creams and powders
• Barrier creams for nappy rash
• Moisturisers and bath additives for minor skin conditions
• Gluten free biscuits and cakes

Others:

• Ketoconazole shampoo
• Tgel shampoo
• Thrush treatment
• "dry eyes" e.g. Hypromellose eye drops
• Chloramphenicol eye drops
• Gaviscon and other antacids

We will no longer be providing Diazepam or similar drugs for flight anxiety.

People often request the doctor to prescribe diazepam for fear of flying or assist with sleep during flights.

There are several very good reasons why prescribing this drug is not recommended:

• Prescribing guidelines that doctors follow don’t recommend using benzodiazepines like diazepam in phobias. We would be acting against these guidelines if we prescribe. They are only licensed for short term use for a crisis in generalised anxiety disorder. If this is the case, you should be getting proper care and support for your mental health and not going on a flight.
• Diazepam is a sedative, which means it makes you sleepy, more relaxed and can significantly delay your reaction times. If there is an emergency during the flight it may impair your ability to concentrate, follow instructions and react to the situation.
• Sedative drugs can make you fall asleep, however when you do sleep it is an unnatural (non-REM) sleep. This means you won’t move around as much as during natural sleep. There is concern this can cause you to be at increased risk of developing a blood clot (DVT) in the leg or even the lung which can be dangerous. This risk is greater if your flight is greater than four hours.
• Whilst most people find sedative medications like diazepam have a relaxing effect, a small number of people can actually feel more agitated or even aggressive after taking it. Diazepam can also cause disinhibition and lead you to behave in a way that you would not normally.
• Diazepam and similar drugs are illegal in a number of countries. They may be confiscated, or you may find yourself in trouble with the police if you are carrying any on arrival.
• Diazepam stays in your system for quite a while. If your job requires you to submit to random drug testing, you may fail this having taken diazepam.

We appreciate that fear of flying is very real and very frightening.

A lower risk approach is to tackle this properly and hopefully permanently, with a Fear of Flying course run by the airlines and we have listed a number of these below or there are also some free online courses:

• Easy Jet Tel: 0203 8131644
• British Airways Tel: 01252 793250
• Virgin Atlantic Tel: 01423 714900

Patients who still wish to take benzodiazepines for flight anxiety are advised to consult with a private GP or travel clinic.