Glossary of terms
This page provides simple explanations of terminology that is commonly used in connection with the regulation and management of controlled drugs.
| Name | Abbreviation / Acronym | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Accountable officer | AO | The person in a healthcare organisation who takes formal responsibility for all controlled drug handling and governance issues in their organisation. This is new requirement under the Health Act 2006. Details of the role are set out in the Controlled Drugs (Supervision of Management and Use) Regulations 2006. |
| Association of Chief Police Officers | ACPO | An independent, professionally led strategic body, which leads and coordinates the direction and development of the police service in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. |
| Chemist Inspection Officer / Controlled Drugs Liaison Officer | CIO / CDLO | Police officer with a specific role in relation to controlled drugs regulation. There are about 100 across England and Wales, some as a full time job and others sharing this part time with other roles. Possibly about to be renamed controlled drugs liaison officers. |
| Controlled Drugs Advisory Group | CDAG |
A working group of a wide range of stakeholders, including the Healthcare Commission, involved in controlled drugs governance. The group considered a summary of responses to the consultation on strengthened governance arrangements in 2005 and has contributed to all subsequent guidance. |
| Controlled Drugs Designated Body | CDDB | A healthcare organisation that is required to have an accountable officer under the Controlled Drugs (Supervision of Management and Use) Regulations 2006. In England this includes PCTs, NHS trusts (including foundation trusts), and independent hospitals |
| Controlled Drugs Register | CDR |
A chronological register detailing the quantities of every Schedule 2 controlled drug obtained or supplied. This may be a paper book or ring binder, or (only recently) an electronic file. CDRs should be in place wherever CDs are stored, for example pharmacies and on hospital wards. |
| Controlled Drugs Regulation | CDR | CDR is sometimes used to refer to “regulation” rather than “register” |
| Electronic Prescribing Analysis and Costs | ePACT | A computer system that provides an interface to analyse prescribing information held on the Prescription Pricing Division’s prescription information database. |
| Independent Hospital | A hospital that is not a health service hospital, but which provides medical or psychiatric treatment (including for patients detailed under the mental health act) or palliative care. | |
| JAC Pharmacy System | JAC | Hospital pharmacy stock control and drug accounting system. JAC is a computer services company. |
| Local Intelligence Network | LIN | A group of responsible bodies working together under the direction of a PCT accountable officer, for sharing information regarding the management or use of controlled drugs. For details see the Controlled Drugs (Supervision of Management and Use) Regulations 2006. |
| Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency | MHRA | The government agency which is responsible for ensuring that medicines and medical devices work, and are acceptably safe. |
| Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 | MDA | The Home Office primary legislation relating to Controlled Drugs. There were consolidating regulations in 2001 (see below). Also many subsequent regulations to enact enact the changes announced in the Government response to the Fourth Shipman report.. It divides drugs into three classes as follows: Class A: These include cocaine and crack (a form of cocaine), ecstasy, heroin, LSD, methadone, processed magic mushrooms and any Class B drug, which is injected. Class B: These include amphetamine, barbiturates, and codeine. Class C: These include mild amphetamines, anabolic steroids and minor tranquillisers and cannabis (in resin, oil or herbal form). |
| Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 | MDR | Regulations made under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 that sets out the restrictions that apply to different groups of controlled drugs, and lists which drugs fall into each of these groups in five schedules. |
| National Prescribing Centre | NPC | A health service organisation, formed in April 1996 by the Department of Health. Its aim is to ‘promote and support high quality, cost-effective prescribing and medicines management across the NHS, to help improve patient care and service delivery’. |
| National Treatment Agency for substance misuse | NTA | An NHS body that aims to increase the availability, capacity and effectiveness of treatment for drug misuse in England. |
| Patient drug record card | PDRC | One of the recommendations from the fourth report of the Shipman enquiry was that every supply of an injectable Schedule 2 drug should be accompanied by a patient drug record card. This would provide a record of how much of a CD is prescribed, dispensed, what is received in the patient’s home, how much is administered, what is left and returned for safe destruction. A pilot has been carried out to test use of PDRCs. |
| Prescribing Support Unit | PSU | A unit within the Information Centre for health and social care which manages three clinical and prescribing databases, provides information services based on those databases, and services based on access to information at the Prescription Pricing Division. |
| Prescription Pricing Division | PPD | Formerly and still sometimes referred to as the Prescription Pricing Authority. Since April 2006 it has been a division of the NHS Business Services Authority. Provides information services to 35,000 prescribers and to managing organisations within the NHS in England. |
| Registered Manager | In relation to an independent hospital in England, the person who is registered with the Healthcare Commission as the manager of the hospital. | |
| Responsible bodies | Bodies that are required under the Health Act 2006 (and associated regulations) to co-operate with each other regarding controlled drugs management and use. Includes (amongst others) Controlled Drugs Designated Bodies, the Healthcare Commission; the Commission for Social Care Inspection; the police, and local authorities. | |
| Serious Untoward Incident | SUI |
Any event which: a) Involves a patient, service user, member of the public, contractors, NHS staff or other providers of healthcare involved in the process of treatment, care or consultation on NHS premises (including patients’ homes) and
|
| The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain | RPSGB | Is the professional and regulatory body for pharmacists in England, Scotland and Wales. It is the regulator for both pharmacies and pharmacists. It also regulates pharmacy technicians on a voluntary basis, which is expected to become statutory under anticipated legislation. The primary objectives of the Society are to lead, regulate, develop and represent the profession of pharmacy. |
| To Take Away or To Take Out medicines | TTAs or TTOs | Medicines that are dispensed within a hospital setting for a patient to take home with them on discharge |
If you have any comments or suggestions for improvements regarding this glossary then please don’t hesitate to contact Aisha Kahlon at:
aisha.kahlon@healthcarecommission.org.uk
Most reports on this site are PDF files, to view any PDF file you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader.