Asthma Inhalers On Sale In Asda

[Rea]

Not sure where to put this so I've opted for the Lounge,

I've just seen this on the BBC site.and immediately wanted to share.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-18936197

:1b

[Froglet]

I just saw this too - was really intrigued on a personal level. Don't have serious asthma but need to keep an inhaler for odd occasions/when I get a cold etc don't have a repeat prescription and getting an appointment at my doctor's is such a pain.

[narnia]

hmm, mixed feelings on that..............good that it will be cheaper than a prescription, of course, but who will be monitoring your health??? It might well be a pain to get an appointment at your gp, but it's vitally important to be regularly checked over, to see if things are improving, or deteriorating, surely?? My husband and one of my daughters are asthmatic and it's a trial getting hubby to go for his check ups, in fact he only goes because the surgery says he can only have one more inhaler before a check up and that's it..............and they stick to it. If he now thinks he can pop into Asda and simply buy them, he won't bother with the doctor. I also have a couple of parents who would quite merrily dose their children up on inhalers for every single cough or sneeze, so how will those children be protected???

[Rea]

Well, it does say they will only give one every 8 weeks so I suppose that will help. I do understand about the need for mointoring though, my father-in-laws GP told me death rates actually rose when people started having a nebuliser at home, without they would have gone to hospital and been properly checked and monitored, with it they tended to think they would be ok with one more dose and it wasnt good enough.

I still like the idea that instead of waiting for an appointment if you run short or lose one, they will be available.

[Fredbear]

Well I have a acute asthmatic adult son and am very sceptical of this new initiative, like Rea I am fearful that close monitoring will not take place, let's hope asthmatics will have a sensible approach for their own health.

[Cait]

For those parents who have Munchausen Syndrome by Proxy it opens up a whole new avenue, though, doesn't it. I'm thinking of at lease one of 'my' parents and possibly two who I suspect may have a mild form of this. It's definitely something to watch, and makes me determined not to administer ANYTHING like this without a doctor's note or Asthma clinic say so.

 

For those of us who have just gone out with the wrong handbag, and who generally have one for self or child and/or find themself on holiday without one, I imagine it will be a godsend.

[klc106]

You don't have to get an appointment every time you need an inhaler though. You can get so many by repeat prescription and then as narnia says you have to go for an asthma check. I don't think it's a good idea for the same reasons as narnia.

[HoneyPancakes]

They've been available in Australia 'over-the-counter' for some years now, but at a slightly higher price than by script. Been a life-saver in the past. Just for the record though. Pharmacies here have been able to issue 'emergency' inhalers but they record who's getting them and get a script in retrospect.

 

Honey