Repeat prescription admin burden

The reporting task sits outside the main prescription workflow, so the same information has to be gathered and maintained separately each week.

• Repeat prescription information is recorded or assembled manually.
• Spreadsheet reporting is a recurring parallel step rather than an output of the fulfilment workflow.
• Staff time is consumed by maintaining the reporting record before the work can be reviewed or progressed.

Weekly reporting hours are annualised over 52 weeks and multiplied by the hourly cost of the time used.

• Administrative capacity is diverted from other patient and practice work.
• Reporting may be delayed when the responsible person is unavailable.
• The annual cost grows directly with weekly hours and the cost of the staff time involved.

What it looks like in practice

• Weekly spreadsheet updates recur even when prescription volumes are stable.
• Staff can identify a regular block of time spent collecting, checking, and reporting repeat prescription activity.
• Reporting completion depends on someone remembering and carrying out the manual routine.