Welcome to the latest episode of Talking Meds and the PrescQIPP podcast, engaging conversations about medicines-related dilemmas. Today, your host Jonathan Underhill, Medicines Clinical Adviser at PrescQIPP, talks to Zoe Girdis about recent prescribing hot topics. This is an opportunity to update your mindline with some of the recent changes from NICE and MHRA that impact medicines.

Zoe Girdis is a pharmacist prescriber who works as an independent consultant for primary care and as a trainer and educator. Her career as a pharmacist spans over 27 years working in England, Ireland and Australia. She was one of the first pharmacist prescribers in the UK and has worked for NICE as well as being the National Director for Practice, Policy and Regulation in Australia. 

Zoe co-founded and delivered the National Polypharmacy Action Learning set 3 day course honing in on many of Zoe’s passions – shared decision making, person centred care and educating/mentoring colleagues to create successful communities of practice and, frankly, be the best clinicians they can be. 

Click here to access the slides that accompany the hour long webinar that covered these topics in more detail.

Today's episode covers the following topics:

• MHRA Drug Safety Update on Topical steroids: introduction of new labelling and a reminder of the possibility of severe side effects, including Topical Steroid Withdrawal Reactions
• NICE Type 2 diabetes in adults: management (medicines update)
• NICE NG 106: Chronic heart failure in adults: diagnosis and management (updated Sept 2025)

Other useful links

• GP Evidence decision tool on Heart Failure with reduced ejection fraction
• GP Evidence on type-2 diabetes
• NICE PDA on type 2 diabetes

A new episode of Talking Meds will be available every other Friday.
If you have feedback or suggestions for future topics and guests please submit them to [email protected]

PrescQIPP is funded by the NHS for the NHS, and our aim is to improve medicines-related care for patients. We do this by producing high quality evidence-based resources and training, and by facilitating networks between NHS organisations and professionals.

The majority of pharmacists and other healthcare professionals across the UK can access our resources by registering and logging on to our website. If you have any difficulty accessing the website you can email [email protected] and we’ll aim to sort things out for you.

Find out more about PrescQIPP here