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One wonders why the RPS is getting involved in this type of venture which is fraught with so many potential problems, as those concerned about the sale of contact lenses over the internet know only too well. They have obviously taken the opposite view to the optical profession and decided that co-operation with the net entrepreneurs is preferable to confrontation.

Who is right remains to be seen. However, the scheme is so riddled with controls that one cannot imagine why anyone apart from internet anoraks would want to make use of the service. The patient must first email the name and quantity of the prescribed drug, assuming that the doctor's writing is legible.

A price is then emailed back and, if this is satisfactory, the prescription is then posted by the patient to the pharmacy. The drugs cannot be delivered by post so are delivered in Pharmacy2u vans. By the time that the drugs arrive the patient is likely to be either dead or recovered. There is no real indication of the benefits of the scheme although other non-prescription pharmacy goods are being offered. One argument against this service was that it could be abused by the use of forged prescriptions. This could be countered by saying that anyone can buy drugs without a doctor's prescription through offshore internet providers. Whether the RPS has produced guidelines which will effectively kill this type of selling remains to be seen.

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