Pharmacists call for morning-after pill

PHARMACISTS are calling for the morning-after pill to be made available over-the-counter as it is in Britain Research published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology shows the potential for a 10% reduction in teenage pregnancies with the introduction of legislation liberalising emergency contraception availability.

However, a recent Irish study has shown that while two-thirds of patients support pharmacists prescribing the drug, two-thirds of GPs are opposed to the idea.

President of the Irish Pharmaceutical Union (IPU) Michael Guckian told the Irish Medical Times that with strict protocols, ensuring only trained pharmacists could prescribe the drug, wider availability of the pill would be beneficial.