NHS Specialist Pharmacy Service (SPS) / UK Drugs in Lactation Advisory Service (UKDILAS)
UK governmentNHS England commissions SPS; UKDILAS produces SPS specialist breastfeeding-medicine advice. · United Kingdom
Visit the source site · Audited 2026-10-14
Who pays for it
NHS England commissions SPS; the only amount found was a 2014 estimate of £7.1 million for all specialist pharmacy services in England, not SPS/UKDILAS alone, and funding after 31 March 2026 is unverified.
Status: Supporting
UKDILAS provides specialist breastfeeding guidance based on several sources, medicine handling in the body, and expert judgment. Its post-March 2026 contract status is unverified, so SafeMomma uses it with another source for important claims.
How SafeMomma uses it
Used for breastfeeding-specific medicine information, with the individual page date checked and another source considered for complex claims.
The audit
- Who controls it
- NHS England commissions SPS, and nine provider trusts host its teams. UKDILAS produces SPS's specialist breastfeeding advice; the reviewed pages do not show political appointees or industry representatives controlling individual entries.
- Money
- The SPS page says contracts then in force covered delivery through 31 March 2026, but publishes no UKDILAS-specific or total current amount. A 2014 NHS England review estimated £7.1 million for all specialist pharmacy services in England, not a current or UKDILAS-specific budget.
- Conflict rules
- The review found no UKDILAS-specific author-conflict policy or page-level disclosure. SPS identifies its professional team and commissioner but does not provide a separate disclosure register for breastfeeding-content authors.
- Method
- SPS says UKDILAS resources draw on multiple sources, medicine handling in the body, and expert opinion. Its page suggests checking another resource or contacting UKDILAS when sources conflict, but does not provide a repeatable search method or evidence grade for every entry.
- Dates on its pages
- The sampled SPS breastfeeding-resource article was reviewed and republished on 18 February 2026; this does not establish the review date of each medicine page.
- Political exposure
- A 2014 NHS England review records that the Department of Health underwrote services for 2013–14 before NHS England took commissioning responsibility. The current SPS contract period ended 31 March 2026, and the successor arrangement was not verified; no 2015–2026 order to rewrite UKDILAS advice was identified.
- Money exposure
- The reviewed sources identify no pharmaceutical-company sponsor, advertising, or product-sales income for SPS/UKDILAS. The current amount and post-March 2026 contract status remain unverified; using manufacturer product information is not evidence of industry funding.
- Track record
- In the codeine breastfeeding test, the SPS page updated 4 March 2026 advised against codeine while acknowledging that the evidence is limited and often based on case reports; it retained a precautionary position because risk is hard to manage. Other pregnancy backtests treated SPS as out of scope when its page addressed breastfeeding rather than fetal risk, and the audit found no UKDILAS-specific major correction or retraction.
Where this comes from
Incentive exposure describes pressure from money or politics, not whether the source is right. Funding alone does not show influence.