From 2023, the governing body of all veterinary surgeons and practices in the UK, the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), updated their Code of Professional Conduct, which has resulted in changes to the way prescription-only veterinary medications can be prescribed.
One of the key changes relates to the prescribing of antimicrobials (antibiotics). Antimicrobials can now only be prescribed after a clinical examination has been carried out on the horse by a vet. This applies to all antibiotics, whether injectable, oral or topical, so includes creams and ointments.
The regulations have come in to help ensure we only prescribe when clinically necessary as a safeguard to minimise the unnecessary use of antibiotics, which is a huge driving force in Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR - see below). The whole of the veterinary profession is coming together ensure we do everything we can to keep these important medications effective when we really need them to be.
If you have any queries or concerns regarding your horse or pony, especially if you are concerned if they may need antibiotics for some reason, do not hesitate to call us and have a chat to one of our vets or book an appointment on 01622 813700. Our team is always happy to give you advice.
Prescriptions
Prescriptions are available from this practice. You may obtain relevant veterinary medicinal products from your veterinary surgery OR ask for a written prescription (at a charge of £18.58 incl VAT) and obtain these medicines from a pharmacy or an on-line pharmacy. Your veterinary surgeon may prescribe relevant veterinary medicinal products only following a clinical assessment of an animal under his or her care.
The policy of this practice is to re-assess an animal requiring repeat prescriptions for supplies of relevant veterinary medicinal products, between 6 months and yearly, depending on individual circumstances.
Before dispensing a prescription or medications, we and any on-line pharmacy require your horse's passport details and to ensure that section 9 (signing the horse out of the human food chain) has been signed.
Please order your prescription in good time before running out of medications as it can take 72 hours for it to be produced. Payment is required on request of a prescription. The completed original prescription will be emailed directly to a pharmacy of your choice.
Please be aware a prescription may not be appropriate if your animal is an in-patient at the hospital or if immediate treatment is required.
Recommended on-line pharmacies:
- 365 Vets
Antimicrobial Resistance (AMR)
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is becoming a global problem in both human and veterinary medicine. Antimicrobials (antibiotics) are essential when treating certain conditions, but bacteria are becoming resistant to many of these medications. Resistance occurs when bacteria develop defences against antibiotic medications, making treatments less effective. The genes that confer resistance to bacteria can pass from animals to people and vice versa, so its vital that we do everything possible to reduce the spread of resistant bacteria, not only in ourselves and in our horses, but also in the environment.
Some of the most important things that we must do are to avoid the inappropriate use and disposal of antimicrobials (as well as other medications). It can be very tempting to not finish a course of treatment if things look better or to save a few ‘just in case’, or even use out of date treatments, but inappropriate use of these medications when they are not essential is a huge factor in driving AMR.
We can all do our bit to help keep these medications as effective as possible. The correct disposal of out of date or partially used antibiotics is a really simple way we can help avoid resistance, environmental contamination and adversely affecting local wildlife.
The veterinary profession has come together to do everything possible to ensure these medications remain effective when we really need them, including an update by the RCVS to the Code of Professional Conduct regarding the prescribing of antibiotics.
Every year, as part of World AMR Awareness Week, we run an ‘Antibiotic Amnesty’. We are ask you to return any unused, partially used or out of date antibiotics for us to safely dispose of them. However, at any time of year, you are able to hand any out of date or partially used medications to your vet if we visit you on your yard or you can drop them in to the hospital if you have an appointment or are passing, so we can dispose of them safely and ensure they do not contaminate the environment.
Together we can help make sure we have effective medications for the future.