How to read your doctor’s prescription in Egypt, and what to ask

To read a prescription, go line by line: who it is for, the date and the doctor, then for each medicine its name, form and strength, the dose, how often to take it and the quantity, and the directions for use. A line you cannot read or follow is a question for the pharmacist or the doctor who wrote it.

This guide uses the NHS’s abbreviations page, ISMP’s 2024 list of error-prone abbreviations, a 2013 article in a WHO regional journal, and a PDF and a search page from the Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA), all read on 1 November 2026. It names no medicine, brand or maker, gives no doses and cannot say what your prescription means for you: ask your pharmacist or doctor.

In short:

• A 2013 article in a WHO regional journal lists what should be written on a prescription: the doctor, the patient, the date and, for each medicine, its name, strength, dose, how often and the quantity (read 1 November 2026). A missing line is a question to ask, not a gap to fill yourself.
• Short forms such as “o.d.” are shorthand, and the NHS warns that one abbreviation can mean different things. ISMP, a US medication-safety organisation, lists several as easily misread and asks for plain words.
• The EDA says a «مثيل» matches the original in active ingredient, strength, uses and form and differs only in trade name, while a «بديل» has a different active ingredient. For alternatives it advises going back to the treating doctor.

Last checked: 1 November 2026, on the pages listed under Sources. Pages and lists change, so open them again before you rely on this guide.

How do I read a prescription, line by line?

A 2013 article in the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal, on prescriptions at one hospital in the West Bank, lists what must be written legibly, accurately and completely on a prescription (read 1 November 2026). It is a list of what to look for, not a legal checklist for Egypt.

Part	What the article lists
The doctor	Name, address, telephone number and signature.
The patient	Name, address, age and weight (especially in children and older people).
The date	The date of the prescription.
The medicine	Name (preferably the generic name), formulation and strength.
The directions	Dose, frequency, quantity, the reason for prescribing, and directions for use in the patient’s language.

Go through it with a pen: for each medicine find the name, strength and directions, and mark anything missing, unreadable or different from what the doctor told you. Take the marks to the pharmacist, or back to the doctor.

What do the letters and abbreviations on a prescription mean?

The NHS’s abbreviations page explains the common ones, and warns that healthcare professionals sometimes use the same abbreviation to mean different things (page last reviewed 24 March 2026, read 1 November 2026). The right-hand column says whether ISMP’s 2024 table of error-prone abbreviations lists the form.

Written as	Meaning on the NHS page	In ISMP’s 2024 table?
a.c.	before meals	Not in the table.
p.c.	after food	Not in the table.
o.d., od, OD	once a day	Listed (o.d. or OD): can be mistaken for the right eye, which is also written OD.
q.d., qd	every day, daily	Listed, and marked as on The Joint Commission’s “Do Not Use” list: can be read as q.i.d.
b.d.s, bds, BDS, b.i.d., bid, bd	twice a day	Not in the table.
t.d.s, tds, TDS, t.i.d., tid	3 times a day	Not in the table.
q.d.s, qds, QDS, q.i.d, qid	4 times a day	Not in the table.
q.o.d., qod	every other day, alternate days	Listed, same “Do Not Use” marking: can be read as qd or qid.
p.r.n., prn, PRN	as needed	Not in the table.
stat.	immediately, with no delay, now	Not in the table.
u.d., ud	as directed	Listed (as UD): can be read as “unit dose”.
p.o., po, PO	orally, by mouth	“Per os” is listed (“os” can be read as the left eye); ISMP’s advice to writers is PO, by mouth or orally.
i, ii, iii	1, 2, 3 tablets	Roman numerals for doses are listed: ISMP says to use only Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3).

On the NHS page “q.d.” is every day and “q.d.s” is 4 times a day. ISMP says the abbreviations in its table should not be used, prescriptions included, because they were misread in medication errors reported to it (2024 list, read 1 November 2026). “Not in the table” means only that ISMP does not list it, not that it cannot be misread. ISMP’s table also covers dose designations: its example “1/2 tablet” can, it says, be read as 1 or 2 tablets.

If your prescription uses a short form, ask the pharmacist or the doctor to say it in plain words. ISMP itself says that where there is doubt, the person who wrote the abbreviation should be asked.

In Egypt: is the medicine written by trade name or by active ingredient?

A prescription may name a medicine by its trade name (the brand name) or by its active ingredient, in Arabic often called «الاسم العلمي» (the “scientific name”). The Egyptian Drug Authority explains two terms you may hear about medicines, «مثيل» and «بديل», in a PDF that shows no date (read 1 November 2026):

Word	The Authority’s wording, and our English
«المثيل»	«يتشابه الدواء المثيل مع الدواء الأصيل في نفس المادة الفعالة والتركيز ودواعي الاستخدام والشكل الصيدلي، لكنه يختلف فقط من حيث الاسم التجاري»: the same active ingredient, strength, uses and pharmaceutical form as the original, differing only in trade name.
«البديل»	«الدواء البديل يختلف في المادة الفعالة للدواء الأصيل ولكنه يعالج نفس المرض المراد علاجه»: a different active ingredient for the same disease.

The Authority adds «تنصح هيئة الدواء المصرية بالرجوع للطبيب المعالج في حالة استخدام البدائل»: go back to the treating doctor when alternatives are used. Whether a pack matches what was prescribed is for the pharmacist or the doctor, and you should not swap a medicine yourself. How to read a medicine leaflet in Egypt covers the leaflet in the box.

The Authority’s registered-drugs search has Trade Name, Reg No, Applicant and Generic Name fields, and the page asks for a code (read 1 November 2026). We did not run a search, so we cannot describe the results, and a registration entry does not tell you whether a pack is what your doctor meant.

We looked for an Egyptian official page that sets out what a prescription must carry or lists approved abbreviations, and found none (searched 1 November 2026). The parts table comes from a WHO regional journal and the abbreviation lists from the NHS and ISMP. For a particular case, ask the pharmacist.

What do I ask the pharmacist or doctor about a prescription?

Take the prescription and the packs. These five questions are our own wording:

1. What is each medicine, by its active ingredient, and what is it for in my case?
2. Do the name, strength and form on the pack match what is written?
3. What do the short forms and the words about timing mean? Can you say them in plain words?
4. Is any line abbreviated, unclear or different from what the doctor told me? Can it be checked with the doctor before I start?
5. Which of my other medicines, vitamins or herbal products should I tell you or the doctor about?

Do not stop, change or swap a medicine on your own: ask the doctor who prescribed it. For the visit itself, five questions to ask before your next appointment and how to prepare for a specialist appointment give you a page to take along.

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Frequently asked questions

How do I read a prescription?

Go line by line: who it is for, the date and the doctor, then each medicine’s name, form and strength, the dose, how often and the quantity, and the directions for use. Take anything you cannot read or follow to the pharmacist or the doctor who wrote it.

What does “o.d.” mean on a prescription?

The NHS’s abbreviations page gives “o.d.”, “od” and “OD” as once a day, and ISMP’s 2024 table lists “o.d.” and “OD” because they can be mistaken for the right eye, also written OD (both read 1 November 2026). Ask the pharmacist to say it in plain words.

What is the difference between «مثيل» and «بديل»?

The Egyptian Drug Authority says a «مثيل» differs from the original only in trade name, and a «بديل» has a different active ingredient for the same disease. It advises going back to the treating doctor when alternatives are used (undated PDF, read 1 November 2026).

What if I cannot read my prescription?

Do not guess. Ask the pharmacist, or the doctor who wrote it, to read it back to you in plain words.

Medigize is a non-diagnostic navigation tool. This is general information, not medical advice. In an emergency, call an ambulance or go to the nearest emergency department.

Sources

1. NHS App help: understanding abbreviations in the NHS App, page last reviewed 24 March 2026, read 1 November 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
2. ISMP: List of Error-Prone Abbreviations, Symbols, and Dose Designations, 2024 (PDF), read 1 November 2026
3. Tayem YI et al.: compliance with the guidelines of prescription writing in a central hospital in the West Bank, Eastern Mediterranean Health Journal 2013;19(9):802–806 (PDF), read 1 November 2026
4. Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA): examples of equivalents and alternatives (PDF, Arabic, no date), page 2 on the difference between «المثيل» and «البديل», read 1 November 2026
5. Egyptian Drug Authority (EDA): registered-drugs search, read 1 November 2026