The decision over when during the dispensing process the procedures for verifying and authenticating medicines are completed will vary between individual pharmacies and will also be impacted by other factors such as whether the patient is waiting or calling back, if the medicine is being supplied in a compliance aid or being delivered to the patient.

In general the check of the ATD should be completed during the dispensing or assembly process, a verification scan can also be completed at this stage to confirm the product does not generate a red or amber alert.

FMD specifies that decommissioning should be completed at the point of supply to the patient. However this can be interpreted as being the period of time from when the medicine pack is selected to the time of handing the medicine to the patient. Where products are decommissioned before being physically issued to the patient it is important that contractors are alert to the “10 day rule” (see later in this training).