OUTPATIENT DISPENSING

Outpatients: Those patients who don’t occupy beds in the hospital or who are not hospitalized are
known as outpatients or ambulatory patients.

Outpatients load into following three categories;

1. Referred outpatients: Those referred directly to outpatient department by his/her attending

medical or dental practioner for further treatment.
2. Emergency outpatients: Those given emergency or accident care for condition that require
immediate medical attention.
3. General or primary outpatinets: Those having their first contact for for their treatment in
outpatient department. These are neither referred nor emergency cases.

Location and Layout: Outpatent pharmacy services in any hospital can be provided by any of the
following ways;

1. From pharmacy that’s separate from inpatient pharmacy

2. From separate window for outpatients of the same pharmacy for both inpatients and
outpatients.
3. From same window for both inpatients and outpatients of the same pharmacy for both
inpatients and outpatients.

Outpatient pahrmacy should preferably located on the ground floor near the entry to hospital for easy
access by patients. It should be near the OPD clinics.

Outpatient pharmacy should be well organized and maintaned having well furnished with sufficient
furniture and proper seating arragements waiting rooms.

The pharmacy receives its supply from main medical store on weekly basis however emergency supply
can be obtained at any time.

Dispensing procedure:

The coming to OPD for his treatment goes to registeration counter and takes OPD slip/token. He is
guided to the phaysician on the basis of sypmtoms. After examinig the patient if physivian feels there
is no need of admitting the patient to the ward, he prescribes certain medications. The patinets then
takes the prescription to the prescription receiving window for outpatients. The pharmacist receives
prescription order and give token to the patient putting the token No on his prescription and advise
the patient to wait. The prescription is filled, properly packaged and labelled by the pharmacsit. The
label contains all necessary information like name, age direction for use and pack medications in
outer packing writing name and token No on it. A copy of prescription or invoice is given to the
patient to pay on cash counter or its paid to pahrmacist otherwise. After payment the medication is
dispensed to with oral and written instructions for use. The prescription is then recorded on isuue
register/ ledger.