Medical cannabis dispensing software for UK pharmacies

Yes. Cannabis-based products for medicinal use, often shortened to CBPMs, have been Schedule 2 controlled drugs under the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 since 1 November 2018. A pharmacy that dispenses them records every receipt and supply in a controlled drug register, and Dataforge PMR keeps that register electronically for each product.

The General Pharmaceutical Council's themed review, published in October 2025, identified 25 pharmacies regularly supplying cannabis-based products for medicinal use, and 17 met all of its standards. Concerns included infrequently documented controlled drug balance checks, stock discrepancies, records missing batch numbers or expiry dates, varying due diligence on third-party clinics and prescriptions handed out without a responsible pharmacist present. Dataforge PMR records balance checks, batch and expiry details, the checking pharmacist and the prescriber's details with every supply.

An unlicensed cannabis-based product for medicinal use can only be prescribed by a doctor on the General Medical Council's Specialist Register. Dataforge PMR records the prescriber's name, address and GMC number in every register entry and shows whether the prescriber is on the Specialist Register.

A prescription for a Schedule 2 controlled drug is valid for 28 days from the appropriate date, which is the date it was signed unless the prescriber gives a later start date. Dataforge PMR shows the last valid date beside every item waiting to be supplied and flags a prescription that has expired.

In England, a private prescription for a Schedule 2 controlled drug is written on an FP10PCD form and carries the prescriber's six-digit private prescriber identification number. Wales and Scotland use their own equivalent forms. Dataforge PMR records the prescription type and the prescriber identification number in the register entry.

Two sets of records apply. The controlled drug register records each receipt and supply, including the patient, the prescriber, the quantity, who collected the medicine and whether proof of identity was requested and provided. Unlicensed cannabis medicines are also supplied as specials, so the pharmacy keeps a record of the product, its source, the batch number and the patient for at least five years. Dataforge PMR captures both sets of records from the same dispensing workflow.

Yes. Dataforge PMR keeps a separate register for every cannabis flower and oil a pharmacy stocks, grouped under cannabis-based products for medicinal use in Schedule 2. Each register shows the product's THC and CBD content, cultivar, producer and pack size, with a running balance in grams for flower and millilitres for oil.

Yes. A dispensed item waits in the pending supply list until it is collected or sent out. When a member of the team marks it as supplied, Dataforge PMR writes the register entry from the prescription and the dispensing record and reduces the balance, so nothing is copied out by hand.

Stock is booked in against the wholesaler and the invoice number. Dataforge PMR records the batch number and expiry date of the packs received and increases the register balance when the receipt is saved.

Each register in Dataforge PMR shows the date of its last balance check and when the next one is due. The pharmacy sets how often checks are required, overdue checks are listed on the overview, and each completed check is written into the register with the name of the person who confirmed the balance.

Expired batches are moved out of usable stock and listed as awaiting destruction. When the stock is destroyed, Dataforge PMR records who destroyed it, the authorised witness and the authority reference. Medicines returned by patients are logged in a separate returns register and destroyed with a witness.

Yes. An entry can be amended within a period the pharmacy sets, which can be 24, 48 or 72 hours. Dataforge PMR saves the amendment as its own register entry together with the reason for the change.

At the point of supply the team selects whether the medicine was collected by the patient, a representative or a healthcare professional, or was delivered. Dataforge PMR then asks whether proof of identity was requested and whether it was provided, and saves the answers in the register entry.

For a delivery, Dataforge PMR records the courier, the service, the driver, the tracking number and whether the driver's identity was checked. Proof of delivery is added to the same register entry when the parcel arrives, so the full journey of the medicine is held in one place.

A pharmacy can add its own delivery drivers and each courier it uses, together with the services they offer. Royal Mail is integrated with Dataforge PMR so that postage labels are printed at dispensing, with a signature on delivery required for controlled drugs.

Yes. Dataforge PMR also provides online booking, clinical forms, video consultations and patient records for CQC-registered private clinics, including medical cannabis clinics. A clinic with its own pharmacy can prescribe and dispense through the same system.

Dataforge PMR is built to DCB0129, the clinical risk management standard NHS England requires of health IT manufacturers, and supports the standards the GPhC and CQC set for pharmacies and clinics. Data is processed in line with UK GDPR under a Data Processing Agreement included with every subscription.

Dataforge PMR is developed by Sync Dynamics Ltd of Blackburn, Lancashire (company number 15767790). The software is designed by pharmacists and doctors who operate regulated pharmacy and clinical services.