Supplementary Prescribing: A Case Study

Partnership in health care is important in order to provide the best care to the patients, especially with the involvement of the patient, who is the center of this joint partnership. In the perspective of medicines management both professionals have the same goal of assuring that the treatment of patient containing pharmacology interventions is safe and effective. This essay will look at the main principles supporting supplementary prescribing, the clinical management plan, the partnership and the implementation of supplementary prescribing.

Supplementary prescribing was introduced in 2003 for nurses, midwives and pharmacists which were then extended to optometrists and allied health professionals such as physiotherapists, podiatrists/chiropodists

Alternatively, in an emergency, urgent and acute prescribing circumstances, supplementary prescribing is not suitable because the clinical management plan needed to be agreed in-between Independent Prescriber, Supplementary Prescriber and the patient before prescribing (DOH, 2006). However, Nuttall and Rutt-Howard (2011) argued that for long term conditions, non-medical prescribers are able to make an independent prescribing decision. Additionally, they stated that for long term conditions, patients are typical, predictable and their response to treatment is straightforward. But they also suggested that if a patient is presented with a condition in which they are competent to prescribe, then non-medical prescribers should be confident and competent to treat patient. ). Nuttall and Rutt-Howard (2011) states that nurses, midwives and pharmacists are capable to prescribe independently, but allied health professionals are able to prescribe only as a supplementary prescribing who needs a CMP to be in place for the patient they want to prescribe. However, DOH (2006) specified that supplementary prescribing also provides a perfect structure for newly qualified

In the same way, Kinley (2004, cited in Courtney, 2006) and supported by Nuttall and Rutt-Howard (2011) who acknowledged that it has been a big hindrance to agree CMP with GPs as an implementation of supplementary prescribing is requiring more time which is greater than the advantages of Supplementary prescribing. Furthermore, Courtney (2006) states that for successful implementation of supplementary prescribing, good interprofessional relationships and team working is necessary.

In the author’s opinion that Supplementary Prescribing is not that expanded this can be either because of GP are reluctant or because many supplementary prescribers have chosen their role as a non medical prescriber to take the independent