A detailed guide to the operation and quality assurance of UK hospital aseptic preparation services This new edition of Quality Assurance of Aseptic Preparation Services provides information and up to date national guidance on unlicensed aseptic preparation. Although it is primarily intended for the use of non-licensed UK hospital pharmacies, it will also be of use in licensed units and other countries and institutions. Aseptic services include the preparation of parenteral nutrition solutions (PN), cytotoxics, radiopharmaceuticals, additives for parenteral administration and intrathecals Since the publication of the Breckenridge report in 1976, which recommended that drug additions to intravenous (IV) infusions should be made in hospital pharmacy departments and not on wards, there has been a substantial increase in hospital pharmacy departments providing aseptic preparation services The first edition of the guide was self-published by the NHS Quality Control Committee in January 1993, with the second edition published in 1995. The current, third edition, was published by Pharmaceutical Press in July 2001. The new edition will be written by the same group of UK quality control specialists as the third edition and will complement the growing list of PhP publications in this area (CIVAS Handbook, Hospital Pharmacy, Pharmaceutical Isolators, etc)