MEDICINES experts are taking part in a national campaign next week to help people understand what they are being prescribed.

As part of Ask About Medicines Week, which runs from Monday to Friday, pharmacists who normally advise patients in general practice clinics will be visiting factories, lunch clubs and coffee mornings in the Easington area to encourage more people to ask about their medicines and answer their questions.

In Peterlee, the team will be at the leisure centre on Tuesday, between 9am and 11am; Peterlee Day Centre, Essington Way on Tuesday, from 2pm to 4pm; Asda on Thursday, between 8.30am and 5pm; and Castle Dene Shopping Centre, the Chare on Friday, between 9.30am and 1pm.

The team will also be at the Lunch Club, Wheatley Hill Community Centre on Tuesday, from 11.20am to 1.45pm; at a coffee morning at Donnini House, Easington Village on Wednesday, between 9.30am and 10.30am; and Church Street, Seaham Town Centre on Friday, between 2pm and 5pm.

About 70 per cent of people are taking medicines at any given time, but half of them for long-term conditions are not taken as prescribed.

The campaign aims to encourage people to ask questions about medicines and to play an active role in decisions about different treatment options.