Can You Read These Rxs?

Rx 1

"This doctor’s office is known for poor handwriting and it’s not unusual for us to call for clarification,” said Kelli Moyer, PharmD, of CVS Pharmacy in York, Pennsylvania. But when she and coworker Pam Hale, CPhT, received this messy script, it was a Friday evening and the physician’s office was closed. Fortunately, the patient knew the drug and was able to clear things up.

Can you read the prescription?

Rx 2

The orderly horizontal lines dividing this otherwise chaotic 6-part script suggest the physician at least tried to write legibly. That’s either heartening or incredibly sad, depending on your perspective. Julius E. Bliach, RPh, FASCP, of Marin Pharmacy in West New York, New Jersey, had to call the prescriber to find out what drugs were being prescribed.

Do you know what the prescription says?

ANSWERS

Rx 1: Keflex 500 mg #21 tabs—take 1 tab 3 times daily for 7 days.

Rx 2: Crestor 20 mg #30—take 1 by mouth daily. Omeprazole 20 mg #30—take 1 by mouth before meals. Glimepiride 2 mg #60—take 1 twice daily. Strovite Advance #30—take 1 by mouth daily. Dulera 200 mcg/5mcg #1—take 2 puffs by mouth twice daily (every 12 hours). Diclofenac 100 mg #30— take 1 by mouth daily as needed for pain.

Read the answers

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Have eye-straining, baffling prescriptions? Send them to Pharmacy Times. Along with a clean photocopy of the prescription itself, your submission must include: (1) the name of your institution and its location; (2) your name and title (PharmD, RPh, Pharm Tech); (3) the correct name of the drug(s), strength, and dosing requirements; and (4) your telephone number. Please mail your submissions to: Can You Read These Rxs?, Attention: Laura Enderle, Pharmacy Times, 666 Plainsboro Road, Suite 300, Plainsboro, NJ 08536.