Frequently Asked Questions

General

I am not receiving the MedicinesComplete newsletter

If you have signed up to receive the newsletter please check your junk folder and/or contact your IT department to add our email address ‘newsletter@medicinescomplete.com’ and ‘newsletter@bnf.org’ to your safe sender list

Can I take out an individual subscription to MedicinesComplete?

MedicinesComplete subscriptions are only available to organisations or institutions. Individual or personal subscriptions are not available. If you are based in the UK and working for the NHS see ‘NHS Eligible Individuals’.

What is Martindale’s ADR Checker?

Martindale’s ADR Checker provides concise clinical management advice with a severity flag system to support you when managing patients with adverse drug reactions. The product offers the ability to search by drug, drug group, ADR or body system and provides users with a quick and easy tool to support clinical decision making. 

Martindale’s ADR Checker will launch on MedicinesComplete later this year. To find out more and sign up for a free trial, please contact your Account Manager or visit the publication page. 

How do I login to MedicinesComplete?

Login instructions have been emailed to all customers. 

If you are logging in by email & password: 

  • NOTE – You will need to reset your password the first time you login to the MedicinesComplete site. You will need a valid email address for this as the password reset code will be sent to your email mailbox. 
  1. Please visit https://www.medicinescomplete.com
  2. Select the ‘Login’ button to the right of your screen
  3. Select the ‘Email/Username and Password’ option
  4. Enter your credentials. If these are authorised, you will be taken to the MedicinesComplete dashboard. 

If you are logging in by IP address: 

  1. Please visit https://www.medicinescomplete.com – If your IP address is authorised, you will be taken to the MedicinesComplete dashboard.

If you are logging in by Shibboleth/OpenAthens: 

  1. Please visit https://www.medicinescomplete.com
  2. Select the ‘Login’ button to the right of your screen
  3. Select the ‘Login via Shibboleth/Open Athens’ option
  4. This will open a new tab where you can select your institution and enter your login credentials. If your credentials are authorised, you will be taken to the MedicinesComplete dashboard. 

For further information please contact your Account Manager or our Customer Support team.

Do you have any user guides or training materials?

Yes. Please visit the user guides section where you will find a guide to download and links to videos explaining how to navigate resources on MedicinesComplete. 

How often is the content updated?

Most of the resources available on MedicinesComplere are reviewed and updated every 1-3 months by our expert editorial teams. For resources from other providers, we provide updates as soon as they are available to us.

How can I obtain a subscription to BNF for commercial use?

Please detail your request using our Enquiry Form.

Can I download content from the website?

You may download and print single screens of information for your personal non-commercial use only. The definition of non-commercial use can be found in our Terms and Conditions. Content can be cited from MedicinesComplete under the terms of Fair Use. Details of how to cite each publication and details of copyright ownership can be found in the copyright notices within each publication.

Account Management

How do I renew my subscription?

Please contact your account manager for further information or submit an enquiry form.

How do I add resources to my existing subscription?

Please contact your account manager for further information or submit an enquiry form.

Where can I get my usage reports?

Usage reports are available one month after your subscription start date. Please contact your account manager. 

When does my subscription end?

Please contact your account manager for further information.

Technical

When I try to access a resource I get the following message ‘You do not currently have access’

If your organisation/institution is not subscribed to a resource you will receive a message ‘You do not currently have access’. Please speak to the person responsible for your subscription or contact your MedicinesComplete account manager.

My account is not recognised and I am unable to log in

Please only try to log in once you have received a confirmation email that your account is ready on the new site.

If you have received this confirmation and are still unable to access the new site then please contact our Customer Support team.

How do I change my password?

There is a password reset option available on the login screen.

  1. Please visit https://www.medicinescomplete.com
  2. Select the ‘Login’ button to the right of your screen
  3. Select the ‘Email/Username and Password’ option
  4. Select reset password

Please note – you will need to use the email address registered with MedicinesComplete for this (please check with the Support Team if you’re unsure). You will also need a valid email address as the password reset code will be sent to your email mailbox. 

The password reset email will be from pharmpress-support@rpharms.com and is automatically sent by our access management system SAMS Sigma. Please check your junk and spam folders if the email is not received in your inbox. You will also need to ensure your system is not blocking these emails. 

Why does the login screen return an error message?

MedicinesComplete requires your browser to accept third-party cookies if you need to login with username and password and/or via OpenAthens, which is managed by our authentication partner SAMS Sigma. 

Cookies are pieces of data stored by web browsers that websites and applications can use to remember a web browser from one request to the next. They allow features like shopping carts and user account logins to function.

Many web browsers make a distinction between first-party and third-party cookies. First-party cookies are created by the web server identified by the address shown the browser’s address bar. Third-party cookies can be created when content is loaded from domains other than the one shown in the address bar.

Some browsers allow users to decide whether or not the third-party cookies should be accepted. To configure your browser to allow third-party cookies, follow the instructions for your chosen browser.

Internet Explorer

1. Click the cog/tools menu icon in the upper right of the window.

2. Click Internet Options.

3. Click the Privacy tab.

4. Click Sites

5. In the Address of website field enter [*.]sams-sigma.com. Be sure to include the square brackets before and after the asterisk.

6. Click Allow, then OK.

 

Chrome

1. Click the menu icon in the upper right side of the browser window.

2. Click Settings.

3. Click Show advanced settings…

4. Click Content settings…

5. Ensure the option Allow local data to be set (recommended) is selected.

6. Click Manage exceptions…

7. In the field labeled Hostname pattern enter [*.]sams-sigma.com. Be sure to include the square brackets before and after the asterisk.

8. Leave the Behaviour drop down set to Allow, then click Done.

What browsers are supported by MedicinesComplete?

All modern and up-to-date browsers that support cookies are supported, including, but not limited to:

  • Google Chrome
  • Microsoft Internet Explorer (nb. Legacy versions from IE7-9 are not supported)
  • Opera 
  • Mozilla Firefox 

For full functionality use a browser that supports JavaScript.

It is recommended to keep your browser updated. 

Can I use MedicinesComplete on my mobile device?

MedicinesComplete has been optimised for use on mobile, tablet and desktop devices. If you are an NHS user, you can download the BNF and BNF for Children app from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store.

NHS Eligible Individuals

Can I access other resources, in addition to BNF and BNF for for Children as an NHS registered user?

NHS registered users can access only BNF and BNF for Children content. To access other resources your organisation will need to take out a subscription.

As an individual undertaking work (or training) for the NHS, am I eligible to access BNF and BNF for Children content through MedicinesComplete?

Yes, MedicinesComplete provides access to BNF and BNF for Children content for UK-based individuals undertaking work (or training) for the NHS. Please refer to the Terms and Conditions.

You will be required to register for a MedicinesComplete account and confirm that you are entitled to access these resources within these restrictions.

I already have an account on MedicinesComplete with my organisation, how do I add my individual NHS user subscription to this?

Please follow the registration process and use the email address registered to your existing organisation account. When you submit the registration form, you will not be asked to verify your email address or set a new password. Instead, you will be taken straight to the login screen where you will be able to see BNF and BNF for Children content has been added to your subscribed titles.

I have forgotten my password to login to MedicinesComplete

There is a password reset option available on the login screen.

I am in the UK, but receiving a message which says the NHS registration process is only available to UK residents. What should I do?

It is possible that your work network is using an IP address which has been purchased from abroad. Due to global shortfall of IP addresses, many UK networks purchase IPs from other countries. Eventually these IPs get updated to the IP database as UK based, but it can take a little time for this to happen.

The following link is a website which looks at a given IP address and determines which country it is ‘based in’: https://geoiptool.com/en/

If you click on this link, it will tell you where your IP address originated from and it may appear that your IP is from overseas.

If your network appears to come from abroad, there is very little we can do as we cannot add international IPs to the Geo IP whitelist. We suggest you ask your IP provider if they know when the country will be updated if that is an option, or possibly try to access the British National Formulary (BNF) on a different network.

If it says your IP originates in the UK, please contact us.