Gabapentin and Pregablin Patient Survey

We are reviewing our prescribing of some types of painkiller: Gabapentin and Pregablin. There is now concern these medicines are potentially unsafe. They can be effective for people suffering specific types of nerve pain but are not effective for low back pain, sciatica or migraine or more generalised longer-lasting “chronic pain”. There has been an increase in their prescribing over recent years. 

Our ‘‘Ask Yourself These Six Questions’ leaflet will give you more information about these medications and some useful websites to look at.

In order to prescribe safely and more easily review your medications, we would like to make it clearer in your notes the reason for them being prescribed. We therefore propose to write the indication clearly on your prescription. Best practice for these medications is also to issue one month at a time. This may already be the case for you but if you are currently receiving two months’ worth of prescription we want to change this to 1 month supply.  

We would be keen to get your perspective about your pain medication. Please could you complete and submit the survey below.

It may be that you are keen to review, and even consider reducing, this medication already; if that is the case, please make a telephone appointment with your usual GP. We would be happy to explain the reasons for this change in more detail. If you have any issues or comments regarding this, please email the practice on nhsh.gp55911-admin@nhs.scot.