Pharmacy’s ECP apology

A BRITISH pharmacy group has been forced to apologise to a 41-year-old customer who preordered and paid for emergency contraception online, only for a pharmacist to refuse to dispense it.

Having been told she could collect the emergency contraceptive pill (ECP) at any of Lloyds Pharmacy’s network of stores, the patient went to a branch in Brighton, where the pharmacist informed her that the product was ready, but declined to provide it due to “personal reasons”.

The Guardian reported that the pharmacist was the only staff member in the store at the time, and advised the woman to go to an alternative store or visit the store the following day.

In a statement Lloyd’s Pharmacy said it was investigating the incident, adding the pharmacist could have done more for the patient.

Under the General Pharmaceutical Council guidelines, pharmacists are entitled to “recognise their own values and beliefs but...not impose them on other people”, while they must also “take responsibility for ensuring that person-centred care is not compromised because of personal values and beliefs.”

A spokesperson for the Women’s Equality party called for the pharmacist to be disciplined over the incident.

“I would expect the pharmacist to be sanctioned in the same way as if they denied any other health treatment or medicine,” she said.

A petition has since been launched to prevent pharmacists from refusing to dispense medication on the basis of personal beliefs.