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As part of the healthcare we provide at Barnet Hospital, Chase Farm Hospital, and the Royal Free Hospital, we have a pharmacy on each site.
The pharmacies dispense prescriptions and provide medicines, as well as offer medicines management support and information. They also manufacture and quality control medicines.
Normal prescription charges apply to all medicines dispensed for hospital patients.
If you are entitled to a free prescription, you are asked to sign the prescription and show proof of exemption. Private patients must pay the full cost of any medicines dispensed.
A pharmacist will check your prescription to ensure it is safe and appropriate. A discussion may be needed with the doctor before it can be dispensed, and some medicines need to be ordered or specially made — this may increase your waiting time.
As an outpatient, if your hospital doctor prescribes you medicines, the electronic prescription cannot be taken to a pharmacy outside of the hospital without discussion with a member of the outpatient pharmacy team.
Outpatient pharmacy teams dispense medication for patients who are seen in outpatient clinics or our emergency departments. FP10 prescriptions cannot be dispensed in one of our outpatient dispensaries.
Our outpatient pharmacist screens each prescription for safety and clinical efficacy before dispensing, and will liaise with prescribers to make interventions in patient treatment where appropriate.
Any prescriptions dispensed are collected during pharmacy opening hours only and there is usually a wait of between 30 to 60 minutes whilst we process the prescription.
Any medicines readily available from community pharmacies and local supermarkets (eg over the counter painkillers or antihistamines) will not be provided on an outpatient prescription.
As an inpatient, you will be required to bring all your regular medication in their original containers. This allows the pharmacy team to complete an accurate medication history and support medicines administration during your admission.
Outpatient pharmacy
- Monday to Friday: 9am to 5pm
- Saturday and bank holidays: 10am to 2pm
- Sundays and Christmas day: closed
Inpatient pharmacy
- Monday to Friday: 9am to 6.15pm
- Saturday, Sunday, and bank holidays: 10am to 4pm
- Christmas day: 10am to 12 noon
Barnet pharmacy production
- Monday to Friday: 9am to 5pm
- Saturday, Sunday, and bank holidays: closed
- Christmas day: closed
Outpatient pharmacy
- Monday to Friday: 9am to 5pm
- Bank holidays, Saturday, and Sunday: closed
- Christmas day: closed
Inpatient pharmacy
- Monday to Friday: 9am to 5pm
- Bank holidays, Saturday, and Sunday: closed
Outpatient pharmacy
- Monday to Friday: 9am to 6.30pm
- Saturday, Sunday, bank holidays: 10am to 4pm
- Christmas day: closed
Inpatient pharmacy
- Monday to Friday: 9.20am to 6.30pm
- Saturday, Sunday, and bank holidays: 10am to 4pm
- Christmas day: 10am to 12 noon
Ian Charleson Day Centre pharmacy services
- Monday to Tuesday: 9am to 5.30pm
- Wednesday: 10am to 5.30pm
- Thursday: 8am to 6.30pm
- Friday 8.30am to 5pm
- Saturday, Sunday, and bank holidays: closed
- Christmas day: closed
Pharmacy manufacturing unit
- Monday to Friday: 9am to 5.20pm
- Saturday: 9am to 1.30pm
The medicines advice team provides a full range of medicines advice to patients and healthcare professionals in both primary and secondary care.
Information about medicines is gained from an extensive range of sources, which are regularly updated to provide the most up to date information available.
Qualified pharmacists answer queries relating to medicines and related therapies, which can include the following areas:
- administration and dosing information
- adverse drug reactions
- availability of medicines
- drug interactions
- safety of drugs in pregnancy and breastfeeding
- safety of drugs in kidney and liver disease
- tablet identification
For any other general enquiries about medicines, please contact your GP or local pharmacy. If you have an urgent enquiry, please call 111.
You can also find general information about your medicines by visiting freely accessible websites, such as NHS medicines A-Z.
You can report a suspected problem with a medicine or medical device using the Yellow Card scheme as soon as possible, for example if:
- a medicine causes side effects.
- someone is injured (or almost injured) by a medical device, either because its labelling or instructions are not clear, it is broken or has been misused
- a patient’s treatment is interrupted because of a faulty device
- someone receives the wrong diagnosis because of a medical device
- a medicine does not work properly
- a medicine is of a poor quality
- you think a medicine or medical device is fake or counterfeit
Anyone can report a problem.
The Yellow Card scheme cannot give you medical advice, for which you should talk to a doctor or pharmacist.
Pharmacy homecare is a service that allows for delivery of medicines, any medical ancillaries like syringes, dressings, or pumps, along with any associated care (for example nursing services for drug administration and patient training), directly to a patient’s home or address of their choice, with their consent.
The service is mostly used for patients with chronic stable conditions, and in some ways, empowers patients to take responsibility for managing their condition, for example through the self-administration of injectable medicines.
The aim of the service is to provide optimal patient care, which is safe, appropriate, and effective.
Pharmacy homecare continues to expand rapidly at our trust, with more than 13,000 patients receiving treatment.
The Royal Free Hospital, Barnet Hospital and Chase Farm Hospital work with a variety of homecare providers as listed below.
Alcura
Patient tel: 01601 133 500
Healthcare professional tel: 01604 433 510
Email: alcura.
Alcura website
Calea
Tel: 0800 121 8300
Biosimilars helpline only: 0800 0902 461
Calea website
Fairview
Tel: 020 3393 2242
Email fairview.
Healthnet
Tel: 0800 0833 060
Email: healthnet.
Healthnet website
Polar Speed
Tel: 0800 783 3178 and 0800 056 4956
Email: psd.
Polar Speed website
Pharmaxo
Tel: 01225 302 188
Email: pharmaxo.
Pharmaxo website
Sciensus (previously healthcare at home)
Patient tel: 0203 393 2242
Healthcare professional tel: 0333 207 9943
Sciensus website
Lloyds pharmacy clinical homecare
Tel: 0345 263 6123 and 0345 263 6115 (urgent queries)
Email: lpch.
Lloyds pharmacy clinical homecare website
Based at the Royal Free Hospital, Royal Free Specials is one of the largest NHS pharmaceutical manufacturing units in the country, with an expanding international footprint.
We are registered and regulated by the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency. We have an MS licence for the manufacture of specials, and an MIA (IMP) for the manufacture and supply of investigational medicinal product.
Supplying more than 130,000 doses of pharmaceutical products per year to our own hospital patients and the wider healthcare system, we supply to:
- NHS trusts
- Private hospitals
- Community pharmacies
- Health clinics
- Research laboratories
- Universities
- Pharma industry
We have a dedicated education and training team consisting of pharmacists and pharmacy technicians, supporting more than 100 learners and students across our four hospitals. Additionally, we receive more than 50 undergraduate students each semester from our neighbouring universities.
We believe that our educational infrastructure and strategy are key to supporting the department and developing our workforce. Through this we support our department to access the appropriate courses, resources and learning environments such as simulation.
Our apprenticeship programmes are focused on improving staff recruitment, training and retention and have enabled many of our local community and internal staff to receive training and development opportunities through the trust apprenticeship levy funding.
Volunteers and work experience
In line with promoting the pharmacy profession and getting more people interested in pharmacy, we have developed opportunities to offer volunteer work in pharmacy.
The Royal Free Charity supports this initiative. If you are interested in pharmacy volunteer work, please email: rf-tr.
We offer work experience placements and regularly receive valuable feedback on what we offer. For more information, email the pharmacy education team via rf-tr.
Undergraduate summer placements
The trust aims to deliver world-class care to patients across Barnet Hospital, Chase Farm Hospital and the Royal Free Hospital, London.
RFL is internationally known for its clinical expertise in kidney/liver transplantation, infectious diseases, breast and plastic surgery and the treatment of myeloma and neuroendocrine tumours.
We performed the first UK liver transplant between a live adult donor and a patient and we were the first in the UK to introduce PET scans for breast cancer treatment. Our mission is to be world class in terms of our innovative healthcare services, clinical research and teaching excellence.
Summer student placements are open to third year students only and aim to be 50% project based (completing an audit/service evaluation or quality improvement project) and 50% clinical. Previous projects completed by summer students have been presented locally and nationally and we aim to publish work where possible. Each student will have their own specialist pharmacist but will also get the opportunity to see numerous sections of the department and specialties at ward level. Students can preference their site to work at and are requested to plan their journeys in advance of preferencing. A small number of projects will be cross-site.
There will be 8-12 placements. Placements are unpaid, however some universities may offer bursaries to complete the placement. If you are interested in applying, please complete the form below.
Please note the closing date for application is 1st February 2025. Successful applicants will be notified by 15th February 2025. Unfortunately, due to the anticipated number of applicants it will not be possible to get back to unsuccessful applicants.
Placement dates
- June 2025 (dates negotiable)
- July 2025 (dates negotiable)
- August 2025 (dates negotiable)
