Version: 2.0.3 | Published: 23 Jul 2026 | Updated: 34 days ago
Summary
Documentation
Description:
The information is supplied by Practitioner & Counter Fraud Services Division (P&CFS) who is responsible for the processing and pricing of all prescriptions dispensed in Scotland. These data are augmented with information on prescriptions written in Scotland that were dispensed elsewhere in the United Kingdom. GP’s write the vast majority of these prescriptions, with the remainder written by other authorised prescribers such as nurses and dentists. Also included in the dataset are prescriptions written in hospitals that are dispensed in the community. Note that prescriptions dispensed within hospitals are not included. Data includes CHI number, prescriber and dispenser details for community prescribing, costs and drug information. Data on practices (e.g. list size), organisational structures (e.g. practices within Community Health Partnerships (CHPs) and NHS Boards), prescribable items (e.g. manufacturer, formulation code, strength) are also included.
Around 100 million data items are loaded per annum.
In Pipeline:
Available
Coverage
Spatial:
- United Kingdom
- Scotland
Typical Age Range Min:
0
Typical Age Range Max:
150
Material Type:
None/not available
Follow Up:
Other
Pathway:
Primary and community dispensed prescriptions
Provenance
Origin
Purpose:
Care
Dataset Type:
Health and disease
Dataset Sub-Type:
Not applicable
Source:
Other
Collection Source:
Primary care - Clinic
Image Contrast:
No
Temporal
Publishing Frequency:
Monthly
Distribution Release Date:
31 March 2026
Start Date:
01 April 2009
End Date:
31 March 2026
Time Lag:
1-2 months
Accessibility
Access
Access Service Category:
TRE/SDE
Access Service:
Scottish National Safe Haven / Trusted Research Environment:
https://publichealthscotland.scot/services/data-research-and-innovation-services/electronic-data-research-and-innovation-service-edris/national-safe-haven-nsh/
Access Request Cost:
Delivery Lead Time:
Variable
Data Controller:
Public Health Scotland / National Records Scotland
Data Processor:
National Services Scotland
Jurisdiction:
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Usage
Data Use Limitation:
- General research use
- Project-specific restrictions
- Research-specific restrictions
Data Use Requirements:
- Disclosure control
- Institution-specific restrictions
- Not for profit use
Resource Creator:
Public Health Scotland
Format and Standards
Vocabulary Encoding Scheme:
DM+D
Conforms To:
NHS SCOTLAND DATA DICTIONARY
Language:
English
Format:
- text
- csv
Enrichment and Linkage
Derived From
PID
Title
URL
Linkable Datasets
PID
Title
URL
This dataset can be linked to others within the Research Data Access Pathway
Observations
Statistical Population
Population Description
Population Size
Measured Property
Observation Date
Persons
5500000
Count
01 February 2026