Supplementary prescribers need more support, survey finds
Pharmacist supplementary prescribers need more support in terms of infrastucture and in becoming better integrated into the health care team, according to the authors of a paper published in the Annals
of Pharmacotherapy this month (2006;40:1843).
The authors surveyed 401 qualified supplementary prescribers in Great
Britain about their early experiences. Just under half of respondents
(48.6 per cent) reported practising as a supplementary prescriber, of
whom 59.5 per cent had written their first prescription within six months
of registering. Most first prescriptions were written in primary care
medical practices (58.4 per cent), with 29.9 per cent written in hospitals.
Longer time since registration, greater confidence in prescribing ability
and training in cardiovascular conditions or multiple conditions were
associated with a greater chance of practising supplementary prescribing.
Identified barriers to supplementary prescribing were inadequate funding,
shortage of staff, insufficient access to electronic health records,
lack of formal referral systems, poor recognition of pharmacy’s
role by other health professionals and inadequate administrative support.
“Greater publicity of the pharmacist’s role in medication
management, especially as a prescriber, and support from the medical
profession and
health care organisations in implementing supplementary prescribing services
are critical for the success of supplementary prescribing by pharmacists,” the
authors say. They add that the cost-effectiveness of supplementary prescribing
needs to proven to encourage investment in support. |
The
Pharmaceutical Journal
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