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Online doctor

All it takes is three simple steps...

Step 1 Register online to create your secure online patient record

Step 2 Answer short questionnaire and make card payment online for Tamiflu

Step 3 Tamiflu posted using Royal Mail Special Delivery. Sign for Tamiflu upon delivery.

Who is this postal service for?

This postal service is for people who wish to have the oral medicine Tamiflu ready for when they need it. Someone might want to take Tamiflu when they come into close contact with someone who is confirmed as having winter or swine flu, or when they themselves contract winter or swine flu. Tamiflu is not a substitute for vaccination.

How effective is Tamiflu?

Tamiflu may help someone who is in close contact with another person who already has winter or swine flu to avoid contracting flu themselves. Tamiflu may also help someone who develops winter flu or swine flu recover more quickly if taken within 48 hours of symptoms developing by:

• Relieving some of the symptoms
• Reducing the length of time you are ill by around one day
• Reducing the potential for serious complications, such as pneumonia

How does this postal service work?

Register online and fill in the questionnaire. One of our doctors will assess your responses and, if appropriate, send you Tamilfu in the post using Royal Mail Special Delivery. Someone will have to sign for Tamiflu medicine upon delivery but it does not have to be the person to whom the medicine is addressed.

Can I collect my Tamiflu from a Lloydspharmacy?

This service is exclusively a postal service. We are unable to organise for medicines that you request online to be collected in one of our pharmacies.

How do I take the Tamiflu I am sent?

If you think you have winter flu or swine flu, you will need to take one Tamiflu capsule twice a day for five days. If you have come into close contact with someone who is confirmed as having swine flu, you will need to take one Tamiflu capsule daily for ten days. Detailed instructions on how to take Tamiflu will accompany the medicine itself.

What are the potential side-effects of Tamiflu?

Like any medicine, Tamiflu can have side-effects. The most common side effects of Tamiflu are nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea, stomach ache and headache. These side effects mostly occur only after the first dose of the medicine and will usually stop as treatment continues. The frequency of these effects is reduced if the medicinal product is taken with food. Tamiflu can also cause abdominal pain, headache, conjunctivitis and rarely skin reactions, inflammation of the liver or visual disturbances. A full list of some of the rarer side-effects will be listed in the Patient Information Leaflet that will accompany the medicine itself.

What are the alternatives to Tamiflu?

The most commonly used alternative to Tamiflu is an inhaled drug that tends to be used for pregnant women and patients with certain kidney conditions who are unable to take medicines by mouth.

Are there vaccines against winter flu and swine flu?

Yes. There are vaccines against winter flu and swine flu and Tamiflu is not a substitute for vaccination. But it is important to understand that neither vaccine can guarantee protection. It therefore makes sense to consider keeping Tamiflu at home even if you have also been vaccinated against both winter flu and swine flu. You can receive the winter flu vaccine in around 260 Lloydspharmacy stores by clicking on our winter flu vaccination service.

Who should not use this service?

You should not request this medicine if you already know that you are allergic to oseltamivir. You should not request this medicine online if you are pregnant or breast-feeding. You should not use this service if you already think you have swine flu and instead you should try to obtain the medicine from the NHS straight away.

What if I think I already have swine flu?

If you think you already have symptoms of swine flu, you should not use this mail order service and should instead visit the Government's swine flu website.