Refrigerated Medicines Stability Tool: Check If Your Medication Is Still Safe To Use

Are you unsure which medicines need to be refrigerated and how long they remain stable if left out? Or maybe you’re travelling and wondering if it’s safe to carry refrigerated medicines on a plane? Here’s a simple tool to help you find answers.

The NHS Refrigerated Medicines Stability Tool is a free online tool developed by UK Specialist Pharmacy Services (UKMi). It helps check how long a refrigerated medicine can stay outside the fridge safely and whether it’s still usable.

Refrigerated Medicines Stability Tool – How to use

This tool is accessible online from anywhere, meaning no need to download any application or become a member of any services. This tool is part of the NHS Speciality Pharmacy Services.

On its homepage, you will find a big search box to look for the medicine in question! Let’s suppose it is Ozempic from Novo Nordisk you have lost its leaflet with its packaging in the bin!

Does Ozempic Require Refrigeration?

Using this tool let’s find out how long can Ozempic stay out of the fridge?

Once we type Ozempic to check its refrigerated stability tool presents us with 3 strengths of Ozempic to start our search.

Let’s select the first excursion of the first one Ozempic 1mg/0.74ml solution for injection 3ml pre-filled pens (Novo Nordisk Ltd) and hit the green Search button!

The medicine refrigerated stability checker returns with a quick result with the following information

Maximum Time
Temperature Range For excursion
Return to the fridge
Use product within the max time for an excursion

If you’re a regular traveller or a healthcare practitioner looking to compile a list of medicines along with their recommended refrigeration temperature ranges, this tool can assist you in achieving that.

Simply click the plus button to make a list first

How to Create a List of Refrigerated Medicines

Once the list is ready, scroll down and Print the list of medications that need refrigeration

print the list of medications need refrigeration

If Ozempic sits above 46 °F like when it’s left out overnight you have up to 56 days before you must either use or discard it. Before each injection, check the solution carefully: if you see any particles settling, cloudiness, or a change in color or clarity (which can signal loss of potency), it’s best to throw it away rather than risk using an ineffective dose.

NHS Checklist for Temperature Excursions

This checklist is essential for health professionals involved in medicine storage, and medicine dispensing. NHS has also published a detailed article and a checklist on managing medicine temperature variations.