Preparing for a VMD Inspection: What Veterinary Practices Need to Know

What a VMD inspection actually examines

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) regulates veterinary medicines under the Veterinary Medicines Regulations 2013. Inspections are typically risk-based — practices may go years between inspections, or may be inspected after a complaint, supplier alert, or following a previous adverse finding.

A VMD inspection is concerned with the following compliance areas:

1. Authorisation — is the practice operating under appropriate authorisations (registered veterinary practice premises, where applicable)?
2. Procurement — are veterinary medicines obtained through licensed wholesalers, with traceable invoices?
3. Storage — are medicines (especially CDs and cold-chain products) stored to the right standards?
4. Records — are receipt, dispensing, administration, and disposal records correct?
5. Cascade prescribing — where the cascade has been used, is it documented and justified?
6. Off-licence (special imports, IIE) — are special imports and individual import exemptions properly authorised?
7. Controlled drugs — full compliance against the Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001 plus the VMR
8. Returns and disposal — wasted, expired, or returned product properly handled

The depth varies — a routine inspection focuses on documentation; a follow-up after a previous adverse finding will sample much more deeply.

Documentation an inspector will typically request

Practical preparation is best framed as: "if an inspector arrives tomorrow, can I produce these in 30 minutes?"

Document	Required by	Detail
Practice registration and premises authorisation	VMR	Current, displayed if required
Wholesaler invoices (last 12 months)	VMR	Tied to receipt records
Receipt records / goods-in log	VMR	Date, product, batch, quantity, supplier
Controlled drugs register	Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001	Complete, in date order, no erasures
Dispensing log (POM-V)	VMR	Drug, batch, animal, quantity, vet authorising
Cascade prescribing records	VMR (Schedule 4)	Justification, animal, drug, decision basis
Cold chain records	VMR good practice	Fridge temperature log, calibration of thermometer
Disposal records (expired or returned)	VMR	Date, product, quantity, disposal route, witness
Denaturing records (Schedule 2 CDs)	Misuse of Drugs Regulations 2001	Date, drug, quantity, denaturing method, witness
Standard operating procedures (medicines)	RCVS PSS, VMR good practice	Procurement, dispensing, CDs, cold chain, disposal — see SOP guide
Staff training records	VMR good practice, RCVS PSS	Evidence each member has been trained on relevant SOPs
Special Imports certificates	VMD authorisation	For each individual import
RCVS membership and registration of all vets	RCVS Code	Current, in-date
Risk assessments covering medicines handling	Management of H&S at Work Regulations	Current, reviewed
COSHH assessments for hazardous medicines	COSHH Regulations 2002	Current, accessible

Common VMD inspection findings

Across VMD inspection reports and Field Force activity summaries, the most frequent findings cluster around:

Record-keeping gaps

• Receipt records that don't match invoice records
• Dispensing logs missing patient identification
• Batch numbers absent from records
• Cascade prescribing not justified in writing

Controlled drugs

• Register entries not made within 24 hours
• Stock checks against register not documented (or not done)
• Schedule 2 cabinet not compliant with BS2881 construction standards
• Denaturing without a witness record
• CD accountable officer not identified in writing

Storage

• Cold chain breaches without documented action
• Expired stock retained alongside in-date stock
• Schedule 2 stock accessible to non-authorised personnel
• Veterinary medicines stored alongside human-licensed medicines without segregation

Wholesaler dealings

• Purchasing from unauthorised sources (online, foreign, non-licensed)
• Invoices missing wholesaler authorisation reference
• Returns to wholesaler without retention of paperwork

Cascade and special imports

• Cascade used as a default (cheaper or convenience) rather than for clinical reasons
• Special Imports certificates expired or missing
• Off-licence prescribing not justified in clinical record

Training and SOPs

• SOPs out of date or unsigned
• Staff handling medicines without documented training
• Practice procedures clearly different from written SOPs

A practical pre-inspection checklist

Working backwards from "inspector arrives tomorrow":

Day before (or any quiet day):

• Pull and reconcile last 7 days of CD register entries against physical stock
• Spot-check 5 random invoices against goods-in records
• Spot-check 5 random dispensing log entries against medical records
• Verify cold chain log is up to date and thermometer in calibration
• Verify all SOPs (medicines, CDs, dispensing, disposal) are current version with review dates not expired
• Verify staff acknowledgement records are current for those SOPs
• Verify your wholesaler list — all current, all licenced, contact details correct
• Walk through the dispensary and CD cabinet — anything obviously out of place?

Strategic preparation (any time):

• CD accountable officer named in writing (typically senior vet)
• Practice quality manual or SOP index — single document listing all SOPs and their owners
• Annual internal medicines audit — date, scope, findings, actions, sign-off
• Incident log — any medicines-related incidents, action taken, learning captured
• Risk assessments covering medicines handling are current

During inspection:

• Be transparent — inspectors prefer practices that acknowledge gaps over practices that hide them
• Don't volunteer information beyond what's asked, but answer accurately
• If you don't know an answer, say so and offer to find it rather than guess
• Take notes during the inspection — what was reviewed, what was queried
• Request the closing summary in writing if not offered

After inspection:

• Address any actions notified within stated timeframes
• Document remedial actions with dates and evidence
• Notify your defence body if any clinical concerns raised
• Use findings to update SOPs and risk assessments

How VMD inspection prep connects to wider compliance

VMD inspection prep overlaps with most non-clinical compliance streams:

• Controlled drugs compliance — directly examined
• SOP management — medicines SOPs are core
• RCVS PSS — overlapping standards on medicines management
• Clinical waste handling — pharmaceutical and CD waste
• COSHH — chemical and biological agent handling
• Risk assessments — medicines-related hazards

A practice with strong cross-stream compliance generally passes VMD inspection cleanly. Practices that compartmentalise — strong CDs but weak training records, or strong SOPs but weak records — typically have at least one finding.

Getting ready

If you've never been inspected, or it's been more than 3 years:

1. Pull every document the inspector might request — the table above is a working list
2. Sample-check for current version, completeness, and signed acknowledgement
3. Reconcile CDs physically against the register
4. Run an internal audit — ideally with a second pair of eyes (another vet, defence body advisor, or external consultant)
5. Address gaps — not perfectly, but with documented action plans showing the practice is improving
6. Capture the audit as evidence of self-monitoring — inspectors view internal audit positively

A practice that can demonstrate it audits itself, finds its own issues, and addresses them is in a much stronger position than one that has never looked.

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This guide is general compliance information for UK veterinary practices, not legal advice. For specific guidance, consult VMD's veterinary medicines guidance notes, the RCVS Code of Professional Conduct, and your defence body.