Quality logo scheme launched for on-line pharmacies by RPSGB

The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain has unveiled its quality control scheme for use by approved on-line pharmacies in London, UK. A survey, commissioned by the group via on-line opinion pollsters YouGov, found that 7% of Internet users buy medicines through this medium. If the sample was representative, it would be equivalent to over two million of the UK's estimated 31.8 million Internet users.

David Pruce, the RPSGB's director of practice and quality improvement, said: "the Internet presents a very real danger to people's health. Dishonest traders are selling medicines on-line without any relevant professional qualifications or health care expertise. The products they sell can be poor quality at best and dangerous at worst."

The Internet logo, first announced in late 2006 (Marketletter November 13, 2006), consists of a stylized cross with the words "Registered Pharmacy" and a box with the outlet's RPSGB membership number. By clicking on the logo, the user is taken to the regulator's own on-line database so that the pharmacist's details can be verified. At present, the registration scheme is voluntary, although the RPSGB is expected to obtain statutory powers soon.