Air travel poses no significant threat to cardiovascular health for most patients, according to media outlets this week. So what does this mean for sunseekers preparing to jet off on their summer holidays when it comes to preventing DVT?
All pharmacies may be at risk of crime, but with careful planning you can minimise the risks, says Zoe Smeaton in the fourth part of our health and wellbeing at work series
Part two of the Update series on end of life care, which can be used for your CPD, considers common end of life symptoms such as constipation, cachexia and breathlessness.
David Spencer has an angry customer. Her son has come out in white blotches and she's blaming the moisturising cream he was prescribed for his eczema. Could she be right?
What’s changed and what hasn’t since the Elizabeth Lee case? Jennifer Richardson reveals what you need to know now about the criminal prosecution of dispensing errors
You receive a repeat prescription for MST from a local surgery on a Friday afternoon, but it has not been dated. You have a good working relationship with the surgery and are happy it will be amended first thing on Monday. Do you supply?
Mr X collects daily methadone from your pharmacy and comes in for his Saturday and Sunday supplies. He requests his girlfriend, Miss Y’s, supply for the same days, as she is unwell and unable to come in for her supervised dose. What should you do?
Pharmacists face ethical dilemmas every day. To help you make the right decisions, every month C+D presents a scenario likely to arise in a community pharmacy and offers comment from the Pharmacy Law and Ethics Association on the legal and ethical implication of the actions open to you.
A elderly patient visits the pharmacy, alarmed he has developed a crop of viral warts over both his hands. He says he recently visited his grandchildren, both of whom have verrucas.
QUESTIONS
The source of the causative virus may have been a verruca. True or false?
Treatment is advisable for verrucas and warts regardless of severity, as very few will resolve otherwise. True or false?
Covering the warts with tape (such as duct tape) is a cheap and painless way to treat them and is particularly good for lesions around the nails. True or false?
Paring down hard hyperkeratotic warts should be avoided, as this will make them grow faster and may cause them to spread. True or false?
If the diagnosis is in doubt, bleeding after paring down is a good diagnostic sign of a verruca or wart. True or false?
The risk of recurrent stroke in survivors of an ischaemic stroke or TIA (transient ischaemic attack) is high. The annual risk is 10 per cent in the first year and 5 per cent in each subsequent year. These patients are also at risk of other vascular events such as myocardial infarction.
Reflect: What are the risk factors for a patient who has had a stroke or TIA?
Plan: C+D's MUR tips on secondary prevention covers drug therapy, including monitoring and side effects, and lifestyle interventions to reduce the risk of a recurrent stroke.
Act: Read C+D's MUR tip to brush up your knowledge of secondary prevention.
Evaluate: What will you check during your next MUR with a patient who has had a stroke or TIA, and what advice will you give?
Improve your Medicines Use Reviews with the C+D MUR Zone - an online library of essential information about Medicines Use Reviews.
Written by practising pharmacists experienced in conducting MURs, the C+D MUR Zone explains everything about MURs, from the very basics of 'what is an MUR?', to details about MUR accreditation and tips to help you conduct MURs, which have been categorised by conditions and drugs/drug types.
Do you know your accountable officer from your RPSGB inspector? And do you know how to deal with CDs returned by patients or which parts of a CD prescription you can amend?
Have a go at C+D's Controlled Drug Quiz and test your knowledge.
As the Royal Pharmaceutical Society begins its call and review of CPD records, make sure you're prepared with this guide from Priya Rasanayagam, CPD manager at the RPSGB.
From educational articles to accredited training courses, C+D provides pharmacists with the knowledge and skills to provide effective patient and customer service. For more information:
C+D and the Medway School of Pharmacy have launched a new interactive MUR accreditation course endorsed by PSNC. Click here for more >>
Counterpart Plus
Download the latest Counterpart Plus modules from July's issue of OTC magazine.
This month the Injury issue: First aid in the pharmacy - what to do if a customer takes ill or has an accident, how top deal with common sports injuries and everyday ailments that affect the feet and legs.
Retail Skills for Pharmacy Staff is a distance learning course from Chemist+Druggist and Hamacher Group, supported by SSL International, to improve the retailing skills of pharmacy staff.
Help your pharmacy staff prevent sales of medicines containing ephedrine and pseudoephedrine being diverted for the illicit manufacture of crystal meth with this retail training programme.
The RPSGB has set minimum mandatory CPD standards for practising pharmacists and registered technicians in Great Britain. Farida Sharafali explains what the changes mean for you.
Want to learn more about a particular clinical topic? Find Pharmacy Update articles, scenarios from A Practical Approach and MUR Tips all organised by topic in our clinical article index.
Every week ahead of the pre-reg exam we will help you test your knowledge by publishing a quick Q&A. Just read the question then check your answer and work through the explanation.
A new question will appear every week on this page and also on the C+D Clinical email newsletter.
If you're just starting your pre-registration year or just want to brush up on your clinical knowledge, try these two questions from the closed book exam.
If you're getting ready for the pre-registration exam or just want to hone your clinical diagnosis skills, try these three questions from the closed book
and see if you can identify the presenting conditions.
Looking for some calculations practice ahead of the pre-registration exam? Have a go at these two questions and make sure you're ready for the closed book paper.
Make sure you're prepared for the pre-registration exam with these two questions from the open book on controlled drugs rules. You'll need to use your copy of Medicines, Ethics and Practice.
Make sure you're up to speed on controlled drugs regulations ahead of the pre-registration exam, with these two questions for the open book paper. You'll need a copy of Medcines, Ethics and Practice to hand.
How are you on controlled drugs rules ahead of the pre-registration exam? Try these two questions from the open book and find out. You'll need your copy of Medicines, Ethics and Practice.
Looking for some practice ahead of the pre-registration exam? Try these two questions on controlled drugs from the open book exam. You'll need your BNF, MEP and drug tariff to hand.
It's controlled drugs month here at C+D, so see if you can pass these two questions for the open book exam. You'll need your BNF, MEP and drug tariff to hand.
In 2005 following a voluntary agreement between manufacturers and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), over-the-counter (OTC) pack sizes of analgesics containing codeine and dihydrocodeine were reduced to a maximum of 32 tablets or capsules with any pack sizes above 32 (namely the effervescents) labelled as “dispensing only”.
All pharmacies may be at risk of crime, but with careful planning you can minimise the risks, says Zoe Smeaton in the fourth part of our health and wellbeing at work series
Part two of the Update series on end of life care, which can be used for your CPD, considers common end of life symptoms such as constipation, cachexia and breathlessness.
David Spencer has an angry customer. Her son has come out in white blotches and she's blaming the moisturising cream he was prescribed for his eczema. Could she be right?
What’s changed and what hasn’t since the Elizabeth Lee case? Jennifer Richardson reveals what you need to know now about the criminal prosecution of dispensing errors
Whether talking to your boss or your customers, theatre expert Ron Aldridge tells
Hannah Flynn how to make that first impression count
The evidence for glucosamine as an osteoarthritis treatment remains mixed, despite the launch of a prescribable product. Gavin Atkin presents the case
You receive a repeat prescription for MST from a local surgery on a Friday afternoon, but it has not been dated. You have a good working relationship with the surgery and are happy it will be amended first thing on Monday. Do you supply?
Mr X collects daily methadone from your pharmacy and comes in for his Saturday and Sunday supplies. He requests his girlfriend, Miss Y’s, supply for the same days, as she is unwell and unable to come in for her supervised dose. What should you do?
A elderly patient visits the pharmacy, alarmed he has developed a crop of viral warts over both his hands. He says he recently visited his grandchildren, both of whom have verrucas.
As the Royal Pharmaceutical Society begins its call and review of CPD records, make sure you're prepared with this guide from Priya Rasanayagam, CPD manager at the RPSGB. 
Help your pharmacy staff prevent sales of medicines containing ephedrine and pseudoephedrine being diverted for the illicit manufacture of crystal meth with this retail training programme.