A new revised model prescription format will soon be released by Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) in a couple of months time. Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) made the first attempt to to launch a model prescription format February this year to have a uniform prescription practice in the state.

MMC has consulted the Medical Council of India (MCI) on the nuances of the new format which would be less tedious and time consuming for the physician. A decision to release the format and the plan for its effective implementation is scheduled to be discussed in the Council's meeting next month.

Informs Dr Shivkumar Utture, executive committee member, MMC, "The format would be released across Maharashtra and the physicians would not find any difficulty in adopting it." Talking about the salient features of the format, he elaborates that the physician has to see around 120 patients on a daily basis. Writing a prescription which may take 10 minutes is not feasible.

"The prescription likely to be circulated would carry details like the name, qualification and registration of the doctor. It would also be mandatory to mention dosage of the medicine based on the age and weight of the person, which is an important prerequisite in any physician's prescription," he concluded.

The new model prescription format would be an answer to the practical difficulties faced by physicians in implementing FDA's model prescription format like writing the names of the medicines in capital letters, patient's address, specifying doctor's qualification and registration number in addition to giving generic drug names.

Dr Utture further elaborates,"Details like writing patient's address and name in a floating population like Dharavi in Mumbai is really not feasible. Maharashtra FDA has done an excellent job in coming out with the format as it will stall quackery but it needs to be made simpler and physician friendly."

As per the FDA format, it is statutory requirement to mention name of the prescriber on cash or credit memo of the drugs under Rule 65(3) and authenticate prescription. Therefore, the prescription shall bear doctor’s full name as mentioned in her or his registration certificate. To know competency and genuineness of prescriber, the prescription shall bear doctor’s primary qualification such as MBBS or BAMS followed by subsequent qualifications. Prescription shall bear the registration number of doctor’s registration with their respective council. The registration number should be prefixed with letters indicating the council in which doctor has registered her or his name.

"MMC model prescription format aims at having simpler and more practical prescriptions for the patient, pharmacist and doctor in the near future. It is tough for doctors who have to write prescriptions every five minutes to follow the FDA model," an MMC official said.

The FDA format also states that it is statutory requirement to mention the address of the prescriber on the cash or credit memo of the drugs under Rule 65 (3) and the patient and pharmacist should know where the prescriber is practicing and, therefore, prescription shall bear complete address of clinic or hospital where the prescriber is practicing. The prescription shall have telephone number and e-mail address of prescriber.

As per the Rule 65 (10) prescription shall be dated and prescription shall specify the name and address of the person for whose treatment it is given or name and address of the owner of the animal if the drug is meant for veterinary use. The Indian Medical Council (Professional Conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulation, 2002 under Indian Medical Council Act 1956 under Code of Medical Ethics at 1.5 prescribes as “Every physician should as far as possible prescribe drugs with generic names and he or she shall ensure that there is a rational prescription and rational use of drugs”. Therefore, prescription shall bear the name of medicine as generic name. The name of medicine should be in capital letters in legible manner. If the prescriber is not sure about generic name he shall add following instructions on the prescription above her or his signature. “Or any other cheaper generic medicine as per choice of patient.”

Prescription shall invariably bear strength of the medicine. Eg. paracetamol tablets 500 mg., amoxycillin capsules 250 mg and shall also bear a proper dosage form of medicine prescribed. eg. tablets, capsules, syrups, creams etc.