Er ( Extended Release: Fill & Download for Free

Ask the prescribing physician, read the original prescription, read the prescription bottle, ask the pharmacist.Extended release formulas are usually indicated in their name with a“CR” controlled release“ER” extended release”“EX” or something similar.

There are (at least) 3 ER or extended release formulations with brand names. These are Glucophage XR, Fortamet, and Glumetza. Generic labeled forms usuallly go by metformin ER.

When we call into the office, please know we have to give the Attorney General warning no matter how busy you are (“This is Joe Pharmacist from Pharmacy X, this call may be recorded”), and we have to verify name and date of birth. That’s just the way it is.Giving prescription authority to whoever answers the phone is likely going to come back to haunt you. I have had Medical Assistants, secretaries, and even nurses give out information that almost certainly was incorrect (wrong dose forms, wrong directions, wrong drug). I sympathize that there isn’t enough highly educated personnel to answer every question in every office, but perhaps they could err on the side of caution?There are so many medications that now come in Immediate-Release forms as well as Extend-Release forms (to the point that a capsule that is Extend-Release can have a different release rate than a tablet) that the personnel creating these prescriptions should have a clear idea that what the patient is getting will be what they are expecting. I cannot tell you how many Metformin ER tablets I check that should be Immediate-Release (and vice-versa) but it is a whole lot. And if I dispense ER when the doctor meant Immediate-Release, guess who gets called out on the error? Right—me, not the doctor who wrote it wrong. And please, please, please indicate if insulin is to be vials or pens or cartridges. So many are just sent in with no indication of forms. Are we to guess?I need to repeat all elements on a prescription that is called in. Doesn’t matter how busy you are.If you just e-scribe another prescription into us after we questioned one given to us earlier…could you just put on it somewhere that this is a corrected form? It let’s us know you are answering a previous question. Really helps us a lot.If you know or suspect a prescription is going to trigger a drug-interaction or allergy but you want it dispensed anyway…just say so. Indicate it in the pharmacy note field or somewhere else. Don’t make us guess because what we’re going to do is call you and you’ll be upset and the patient will be upset that the script is delayed. But that is our job: to check interactions as well as check the script for accuracy.We hate insurance Prior Authorizations and formularies and all that stuff as much as you do.And last…can we all remember that we are on the same team? That we are here to serve the patient as best we can? Fighting among ourselves is just so self defeating.