Over 1 billion prescriptions are dispensed each year in England alone, at a total net ingredient cost of approaching £9 billion. This equates to an average cost per head of population of over £160: 90% of these prescriptions are free of charge. The most frequently prescribed group of drugs are those used for treating diabetes.1 Almost 7% of hospital admissions are caused by adverse drug reactions, and approaching 10% of acute hospital prescriptions contain prescription errors. Adherence to medication prescribed for long-term medical conditions falls to about 70% at 10 days after initiating the prescription, and can be as high as 50%. Half of these patients realise that …