It is very difficult, perhaps impossible, for patients who are prescribed 10 or more separate items of medication every day to take them strictly as prescribed, even when (as in our study) they express a clear intent to do so. The pharmacist can act like a gatekeeper, which can cause frustration for individuals with chronic pain. Box 1 presents a brief description based on one community pharmacy site (for a more detailed account of our observations in community pharmacy see Fudge and Swinglehurst 2021). Under this view, taking medicines is not only a matter of cognition and decision-making (shared or otherwise).

in-depth narrative interviews using Wengraf’s biographic-narrative-interpretive method, 42 eliciting a narrative with one opening question (“please tell me the story of your life since you were first advised to take medicines”) and using the participant’s account to elicit further narratives.If the person you care for is taking several different medicines their GP surgery may offer them a free structured medication review with a pharmacist or other healthcare professional. It’s a small moment, but it perfectly captures both how inaccessible packaging can be when the strength and dexterity in your hands are affected by RA and the violence of the emotions that accompany such situations.

This is a good option for patients who demonstrate a high degree of competency when using blister pack medication at home. Occasionally unexpected high sales levels of a particular product happen, and we cannot ge t the web site updated. Table 1 summarises our data collection across general practices, community pharmacies and patients’ homes.Our blister pack service is available to people who are on 4 or more NHS repeat prescription medications.