Management of Non-medical Prescribing in Britain and Its Enlightenment to China / 中国药房

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE:To systematically investigate the management mode of non-medical prescribing in Britain and its enlightenment to the establishment and implementation of non-medical prescribing in China. METHODS:By retrieving domestic and foreign literatures,non-medical prescribing in Britain was introduced systematically in terms of development history,types, core elements,implementation status and effect;the suggestions were put forward for the development of non-medical prescribing in China. RESULTS & CONCLUSIONS:Britain implemented non-medical prescribing since 1994. After years of practice and a series of legislation and revision,independent prescribers (including nurses and pharmacists) have owned the statutory right to prescribe any medicine for patients by 2012. In Britain,non-medical prescribing is divided into independent prescribing which mainly exists in community pharmacies and is limited to specific diseases,supplementary prescribing which exists in hospitals or clinic and needs to be signed with doctors. The management institutions are mainly composed of one state administrative department (British Department of Health) and three professional associations (British Nursing and Midwifery Council,The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain,The Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland). There are detailed and strict stipulations on the qualification and corresponding responsibilities of the prescribing authority. The British government has provided legal protection for the development of the non-medical prescribing model,and the number of non-medical prescribers is increasing. The implementation of this model has increased the patients'access to medical services. Drawing lessons from the development of non-medical prescribing management in Britain,our country needs to improve legislation,provide legislative protection for the implementation of non-medical prescribing,expand the scope of practice of nurses and pharmacists,establish and improve the training program of non-medical prescribing professionals to promote the development of non-medical prescribing model in China.