The Prescribing Information System (PIS) is the definitive data source for prescribing relating to medicines and costs that are prescribed and dispensed in the community in Scotland.

This is a subset of data for the Brain Health Data Pilot (BHDP) project

The Brain Health Data Pilot (BHDP) project aims to be a shared database (like a library) of information for scientists studying brain health, especially for diseases like dementia, which affects about 900, 000 people in the UK. Its main feature is a huge collection of brain images linked to routinely collected health records, both from NHS Scotland, which will help scientists learn more about dementia and other brain diseases. What is special about this database is that it will get better over time – as scientists use it and add their discoveries, it becomes more valuable.

This dataset is a subset of the Prescribing Information System (PIS) data for use with the BHDP project.

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.