CASH-STRAPPED health service bosses are asking patients to buy their own painkillers rather than ask the NHS to pay ‘ten times more’ for minor ailment medicines on prescription.

NHS Bradford City, NHS Bradford Districts and NHS Airedale, Wharfedale and Craven clinical commissioning groups (CCGs) need to claw back £17.6m to plug their budget deficits.

In October the three CCGs started a rolling campaign called It’s Your NHS, Don’t Waste It to help make vital savings and close funding shortfalls between their 2016/17 annual budgets and the increasing cost of healthcare.

Now, the CCGs have put out another public reminder to raise more awareness and urge people again to take control of their medication as part of a drive to drastically reduce medicines waste.

In Bradford Districts CCG, the deficit is around £10.4m, it is £2.6m in NHS Bradford City and in NHS Airedale, Wharfedale and Craven CCG, it is £4.6m.

The CCGs are asking patients to buy some basic medicines such as paracetamol and ibuprofen with advice from local pharmacies instead of asking GPs for a prescription, and are also asking them to cancel any repeat prescriptions that are no longer needed.

The cost of prescriptions issued by GPs in 2015/16, was £54.6m for Bradford Districts CCG, £16.5m for Bradford City CCG and £25.8m for Airedale, Wharfedale and Craven CCG.

According to the CCGs, some minor medicines can cost up to ten times as much on the NHS, depending on the medicine itself, the brand chosen, dispensing fees, and the cost of the GP appointment among other factors.

Dr Andy Withers, clinical chairman of NHS Bradford Districts CCG said: “We hope this campaign will encourage people to take more control of their medicines and raise awareness of medicines waste.

“Only ordering the medicines they need and buying medicines for short-term minor ailments will help people to understand more about their care and treatment.”

He said one of the easiest ways for people to take control was to order their medicines online or by using an app, SystmOnline, which allows people to view all their regular medicines and only order what is needed.

Dr Withers said: “It’s easy, convenient and available 24/7 so there is no need to travel to a GP practice.

“People can also request to be set up for patient online access on behalf of somebody they care for. To register, they should take some photo ID and proof of address to their GP practice and ask to be set up for patient online services.”

To find out more, visit bradfordcity.nhs.uk, bradforddistrictsccg.nhs.uk or airedalewharfedalecravenccg.nhs.uk