Keep a Witnessed Controlled-Drug Register

Who / when: the pharmacist (or pharmacy tech or pharmacy admin), whenever a controlled drug is received, dispensed, returned or otherwise moves. Controlled substances — the CD2 to CD5 schedules, things like morphine and pethidine — are held to a higher standard than ordinary stock: every movement must be witnessed by a second member of staff and the register must carry a running balance you can reconcile against the physical count at any moment. Veona enforces this so the book can never quietly drift from the shelf. We’ll follow Tunde, the pharmacist, recording a delivery.

1. Pharmacist — open Rx → Controlled Register (“Witnessed running balance for CD2–CD5 substances”). The register lists each entry against its drug, with the running “Balance” column down the side.
2. Pharmacist — to record a movement, add an entry and pick the type — for example “Received” for a delivery into the cabinet, or a dispensed entry going out. Choose the controlled drug and enter the quantity.
3. Pharmacist — name the “Witness” from the staff picker. The witness is a second member of staff who confirms the movement alongside you — this is mandatory, and is the second signatory the law expects on a controlled-drug entry.
4. Pharmacist — save the entry. Veona records the drug, the quantity, you as the pharmacist, the witness, and the schedule, and recalculates the running “Balance” so the new on-hand is shown immediately.

Caution

The witness is not optional. Try to record a controlled-drug entry without naming a witness and Veona refuses it. Every movement carries a named second signatory — that is the whole point of a controlled register, and Veona will not let you keep one without it.

Note

The register and the ward MAR agree by design. When a controlled drug is given to an inpatient, the ward nurse must also name a witness on the MAR (Administer, Hold or Refuse Medication on the Ward MAR). The pharmacy’s register and the bedside record describe the same controlled stock, so the running balance stays consistent from the cabinet to the patient.

What happens next

The running balance is always current, so a controlled-drug audit becomes a straight comparison: count the cabinet, read the “Balance” column, and they should match — with every movement traceable to a pharmacist, a witness and a time. If a controlled drug needs to come back into stock, the return is itself witnessed and posts against the same register — see Return Medication to One Inventory. The register sits over the same inventory as ordinary dispensing, so a controlled drug’s on-hand never tells two different stories.

Follow the trail

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• Related: Return Medication to One Inventory · Prescribe, Dispense by FEFO and Draw Down Stock