High-prescribing doctors could be targeted for action after spiralling costs left Grampian NHS chiefs staring at a £2million-plus overspend.
The number of drugs and other medical necessities signed off by GPs across the area has jumped by around 2.5%.
Coupled with the rising cost of items, it has become one of the biggest headaches facing the cash-strapped body.
Urgent efforts to cut costs have been debated by new integration joint boards (IJB) in Moray, Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire this week.
The bodies, which bring together health and local council care sectors, were presented with a range of efficiency strategies..
In Aberdeenshire, board members were told that some £5.23million of “deliverable” savings had been identified.
Providing care for an ageing population is the biggest pressure on the system, but fast-rising prescription costs are another major issue.
Initial figures have revealed that doctors in Aberdeenshire are on course to approve treatments costing almost £1.1million more than expected.
In Aberdeen the overspend is projected to top £500,000 and, in Moray, the budget is £183,000 beyond expectations after just one quarter.
A report to the Aberdeen IJB said one response to the findings would be a “review of prescribing patterns across general practices and follow up on outliers” – though it does not specify what action could be taken.
It also promised a review of “polypharmacy” cases – where patients are on four or more drugs at the same time – and repeat prescriptions “to reduce wastage”.
The Moray joint board was told “anticipated efficiency measures have not yet been fully developed in conjunction with prescribers”.
All surgeries have access to the ScriptSwitch system, which flags up cheaper options when a doctor prescribes an expensive drug, and are supplied with regular data on how they compare to others.
Patients have also been urged not to waste medicines – including a campaign against excessive use of inhalers.
An NHS Grampian spokeswoman said it “tries to estimate the requirements for the drug budget based on the multiple drivers of increasing cost balanced against efficiencies”.
The ageing population, earlier diagnosis, new – and often pricier – treatments and price hikes for some generic drugs were among factors which accounted for the increase.
She added: “Specific projects are also undertaken in individual GP practices based on local need.”
