Alert issued over pharmacies claiming hospital link

Patients are being warned to steer clear of online pharmacies that are using a hospital's address and other details to sell prescription-only medicines.

NHS Humber Health Partnership said the websites were claiming to be based at Diana, Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby.

Joanne Goode, chief pharmacist at the health partnership, said she was alerted to the websites after a member of the public contacted the hospital's pharmacy with a query about medicine they had bought online.

"We do not operate any online pharmaceutical companies, even if they are claiming to be based at our hospitals," Goode said.

"We know of one person who's bought medication online from one of these websites but hasn't received any medication.

"We're concerned people are parting with their money for medicines that do not appear, thinking these websites have something to do with our hospitals."

The health partnership operates across East Yorkshire, Hull, North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire.

Goode added that a further concern was that people "may be receiving drugs which they may be allergic to or drugs which are being passed off as another drug, or are actually counterfeit medicines".

The websites have been reported to NHS Fraud and the General Pharmaceutical Council, which regulates pharmacies in the UK.

A spokesperson for the health partnership said that if anybody had taken medication bought from the websites they should contact their GP or NHS 111 for advice.

A spokesperson from the General Pharmaceutical Council said: "Fake pharmacies can look very convincing but can put your health at serious risk, as the medicines they supply may not be genuine and could be unsafe.

"All legitimate pharmacies must be registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council and meet our standards. Before making any purchases we would urge the public to always check if an online pharmacy is on our register."

The BBC, which has seen both the websites, has contacted their operators for comment.

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