[Prescription habits. Illustrated by a random sample]

With the object of illustrating prescribing habits and errors in prescriptions, a randomized sample of 1,000 prescriptions was employed from the prescriptions from a single day. The main result of the investigation is that, in general, a great proportion of errors occur as 61.7% of the prescriptions were incorrect. Errors concerning limiting of issue and indications of reasons for use are particularly noticeable. Only 48% of the drugs prescribed for which limitation of issue is compulsory and 32.4% of all preparations do not show the indication for use. The alterations in the circular on dispensing issued by the Danish Board of Health with the object of prompting doctors to write multiple prescriptions and always to give the indication for employment of the preparation concerned are thus far from fulfilled. Employment of telephonic prescriptions is still extensively employed as nearly 50% of all prescriptions are given by telephone and the intention of the circular that telephone prescriptions should only be employed in special circumstances is thus far from fulfilled. The present authors find the the doctors' duty to provide the indications for use should be emphasized on account of control of prescriptions in the pharmacies and ensuring correct medication for the patients concerned. Similarly is should be deliberated whether the requirement of endorsing prescriptions for reissue of B preparations should be maintained and measures for limitation of the use of telephonic prescriptions should be limited with due respect to the advantages and disadvantages of these.