Clinic › Prescription format

Prescription format

A prescription is read by a patient, a chemist and sometimes a regulator. A clear layout prevents mistakes.

What to include

• Doctor and clinic: your name, qualification, clinic address and phone. The Indian Medical Council (Professional Conduct, Etiquette and Ethics) Regulations, 2002 ask a registered physician to show the registration number on prescriptions; check the current National Medical Commission rules for your case.
• Date and visit number, so a prescription can be found again.
• Patient: name, age, sex, phone, and known allergies. Age matters for dosing, so write it, and for babies write months.
• Medicines: name, dose, how often, for how many days, and when to take them (after food, at bedtime). Write each on its own line, legibly.
• Advice and the next visit date.
• Signature of the doctor.

Common shorthand

OD once a day, BD twice a day, TDS three times a day, QID four times a day, HS at bedtime, SOS only if needed, Stat at once. The prescription table here accepts these, and also patterns like 1-0-1 (morning, none, night). Write what your patient and chemist will understand.

What this site does and does not do

It prints the layout above from what you type. It does not suggest medicines, doses or diagnoses; the medicine names that appear as suggestions are only the ones you typed in earlier visits. Keep your own records as your professional duty requires; a printout here is a convenience, not a legal substitute.