How Compounding Works
From the prescription to the finished preparation, here is what actually happens when a medicine is compounded at our pharmacy in Surfers Paradise.
What Compounding Actually Is
Compounding is the preparation of a medicine from individual ingredients for one named patient, to a formula written by a registered prescriber. It predates mass manufacturing by several centuries and it still exists for the same reason it always did: not every patient fits the product.
The active ingredient is the one your prescriber chose. What compounding changes is the strength, the base, the flavour and the form. That distinction matters, because compounding is not an alternative to conventional medicine. It is conventional medicine, assembled individually.
Every preparation requires
- A current prescription from a registered prescriber
- A formula we can prepare safely
- Ingredients from established pharmaceutical suppliers
- A pharmacist check against the prescription
- A label with directions, storage and expiry
The Four Stages
We read the formula
A pharmacist checks the active, strength, base and quantity against the prescription. Anything unclear is queried with the prescriber before we start.
We source the ingredients
Ingredients come from established pharmaceutical suppliers, with documentation retained for every batch used.
We compound on site
Your medicine is prepared in our own compounding room in Surfers Paradise. Nothing is sent to a third party.
We check and label
The finished preparation is checked by a registered pharmacist and labelled with directions, storage instructions and an expiry.
Timeframes vary
Some preparations are ready the same day. Others wait on an ingredient. We tell you up front rather than after you have dropped the script in.
Price before you commit
We quote on the details of the prescription. Nothing is made until you say go ahead.
How to Get One Prepared
1. Talk to your prescriber
Compounded medicines cannot be supplied without a prescription. Tell your doctor, specialist, dentist or vet what is not working and ask whether it can be compounded.
2. Send us the prescription
Bring it in, post it, or send it through online. Call us first if you would like a price and a timeframe before you commit.
3. Collect or have it delivered
Pick it up at Piazza 16, 3221 Surfers Paradise Boulevarde, or we courier it Australia wide through Aramex.
General Compounding Questions
Still Have a Question About Compounding?
Ask a pharmacist. We are open seven days on Surfers Paradise Boulevarde, inside My Doctors Medical Clinic.