Skip to main content
N I Direct government services

Main navigation

  • Home
  • News
  • Contacts
  • Help
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • RSS

Breadcrumb

  1. Home
  2. Health and wellbeing
  3. Health services
  4. Managing your healthcare
  5. Medicines

Prescriptions

It’s important to take prescription medicines as directed by your doctor or pharmacist. Always follow the advice you are given, and use your medication correctly. This advice is also important to remember if you are a carer responsible for managing someone else’s medicines.

Taking prescription medicines

Most people will take prescription medicines to prevent, treat or manage illness. The effective use of medicines can help you stay healthy for longer. Many previously debilitating or life-limiting conditions are now prevented or managed through regular medicines use – often on a long-term basis.

Prescribing medicine

If your doctor or a specialist prescribes you long-term medication, you should follow their professional advice. This means:

  • taking the exact dose at the right time
  • taking only the medicines prescribed for you
  • ordering only the medicines you need and use from your GP

This is  important if you have a long-term condition which may involve life-long daily treatment, like asthma, diabetes or high blood pressure.

Antibiotics

Antibiotics are medicines used to treat illnesses caused by bacterial infection. You shouldn't take antibiotics to treat a cold or flu which are caused by viruses.
It important to follow your doctor and pharmacist's advice when taking antibiotics.

If your doctor prescribes antibiotics, you must finish the course. You shouldn't stop taking the medicine once you start to feel better.

Drug-resistant bacteria

Drug-resistant bacteria don't respond to antibiotics and cause infection and diseases such as tuberculosis, pneumonia, and meningitis. 

You could increase the risk of developing drug-resistant bacteria if:

  • you take antibiotics when you don’t need them for example to treat a viral infection
  • you take a partial dose of antibiotics 

If you're concerned about any prescription medicine you take,  ask your pharmacist or doctor for more information.

  • Antibiotic resistance

Wasted medicine

If a pharmacist dispenses medicine but you don't use it, the medicine is wasted.

More useful links

  • Risks of buying medicines over the internet
  • Community pharmacists
  • Your local doctor (GP)
Share this page Share on Facebook (external link opens in a new window / tab) Share on Twitter (external link opens in a new window / tab) Share by email (external link opens in a new window / tab)

Medicines

  • Antibiotic resistance
  • Medicinal cannabis
  • Prescriptions
  • Risks of buying medicines over the internet

Translation help

How to translate this page

Help improve this page - send your feedback

What do you want to do?
Report a problem
Which problem did you find on this page? (Tick all that apply)

Messages

You will not receive a reply. We will consider your feedback to help improve the site.

Don't include any personal or financial information, for example National Insurance, credit card numbers, or phone numbers.

What is your question about?

What to do next

Comments or queries about angling can be emailed to anglingcorrespondence@daera-ni.gov.uk 

If you have a comment or query about benefits, you will need to contact the government department or agency which handles that benefit.  Contacts for common benefits are listed below.

Carer's Allowance

Call 0800 587 0912
Email 
dcs.incomingpostteamdhc2@nissa.gsi.gov.uk

Discretionary support / Short-term benefit advance

Call 0800 587 2750 
Email 
customerservice.unit@communities-ni.gov.uk

Disability Living Allowance

Call 0800 587 0912 
Email dcs.incomingpostteamdhc2@nissa.gsi.gov.uk

Employment and Support Allowance

Call 0800 587 1377

Jobseeker’s Allowance

Contact your local Jobs & Benefits office

Personal Independence Payment

Call 0800 587 0932

If your query is about another benefit, select ‘Other’ from the drop-down menu above.

Comments or queries about the Blue Badge scheme can be emailed to bluebadges@infrastructure-ni.gov.uk or you can also call 0300 200 7818.

For queries or advice about careers, contact the Careers Service.

For queries or advice about Child Maintenance, contact the Child Maintenance Service.

For queries or advice about claiming compensation due to a road problem, contact DFI Roads claim unit.

If you can’t find the information you’re looking for in the Coronavirus (COVID-19) section, then for queries about:

  • Restrictions or regulations — contact the Department of Health
  • Travel advice (including self-isolation) — contact the Department of Health
  • Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccinations — contact the Department of Health or Public Health Agency

If your query is about another topic, select ‘Other’ from the drop-down menu above.

For queries about your identity check, email nida@nidirect.gov.uk and for queries about your certificate, email covidcertni@hscni.net.

For queries or advice about criminal record checks, email ani@accessni.gov.uk

Application and payment queries can be emailed to ema_ni@slc.co.uk

For queries or advice about employment rights, contact the Labour Relations Agency.

For queries or advice about birth, death, marriage and civil partnership certificates and research, contact the General Register Office Northern Ireland (GRONI) by email gro_nisra@finance-ni.gov.uk

For queries about the High Street Spend Local Scheme,  email HSSS.mail@economy-ni.gov.uk.

For queries about:

  • Car tax, vehicle registration and SORN
    contact the Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA), Swansea
     
  • Driver licensing and tests, MOT and vehicle testing
    contact the Driver & Vehicle Agency (DVA), Northern Ireland

If your query is about another topic, select ‘Other’ from the drop-down menu above.

For queries about your identity check, email nida@nidirect.gov.uk.

 

For queries or advice about passports, contact HM Passport Office.

For queries or advice about Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs), including parking tickets and bus lane PCNs, email dcu@infrastructure-ni.gov.uk

For queries or advice about pensions, contact the Northern Ireland Pension Centre.

If you wish to report a problem with a road or street you can do so online in this section.

If you wish to check on a problem or fault you have already reported, contact DfI Roads.

For queries or advice about historical, social or cultural records relating to Northern Ireland, use the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI) enquiry service.

For queries or advice about rates, email LPSCustomerTeam@lpsni.gov.uk

For queries or advice about  60+ and Senior Citizen SmartPasses (which can be used to get concessionary travel on public transport), contact Smartpass - Translink.

If you have a question about a government service or policy, you should contact the relevant government organisation directly.  We don't have access to information about you.

Related sites

  • gov.uk
  • nibusinessinfo.co.uk

Links to supporting information

  • Accessibility statement
  • Crown copyright
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy
  • Cookies
  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • YouTube
  • RSS