Doctors’ bags are important when carrying out home visits, although the contents can vary depending on the attending doctor and the work they undertake. The content of the bag will also depend on the location of the practice – the drugs required by a remote and rural GP may be very different to drugs required by an inner city GP.
When deciding what needs to be in the doctor’s bag, the following should be considered:
- The medical condition the doctor is likely to face
- The medicines that the doctor is able to use and confident in using
- The availability of emergency services if required
- Where the local pharmacy is and what the opening hours are
Things to Consider
When a doctor decides to take medication for a home visit they must be aware that most medicines should be stored between 4° and 25°C. The doctor must also be mindful of health and safety and infection control, and have gloves and alcohol gel available. If they are taking equipment with them, such as an electronic BP machine, they must remember that it requires portable appliance testing. Doctors may need to be reminded to have it available for testing each year, since they sometimes get forgotten about because they’re out of sight.
The bag must be locked when not in use and never left unattended.
Stock and Expiry Dates
Whilst medication in doctors’ bags is out of sight, it must be treated in the same way as other medication in the practice. It must be included in regular checks of stock levels and expiry dates. Medication and items that have been used should be replaced as soon as possible.
A separate Controlled Drug (CD) register should be kept if CDs are to be kept in a doctor’s bag.
This Mythbuster covers emergency drugs for GP practices, including home visit medicines.
What Equipment Should be in the Doctor’s Bag?
The list below isn’t exhaustive, and will differ depending on the circumstances and preferences of the GP. Here are some suggestions:
- Stethoscope
- Sphygmomanometer (serviced regularly)
- Diagnostic set (with spare batteries)
- Patella hammer
- Tuning fork
- Thermometer
- Tongue depressors
- Peak flow meter plus mouthpieces
- Tape measure
- Obstetric wheel
- Gloves
- Lubricating jelly
- Pulse oximeter
- Dip sticks (in date)
- Glucometer (plus in-date test strips)
- BNF (paper or electronic version)
- Preferred reference books (paper or electronic version)
- Pregnancy tests
- Vaginal speculum
- Pinard stethoscope
- Adrenaline and means of administering it
And a final reminder – make sure that all medicines and equipment in the doctor’s bag are regularly checked and in date!
