Between April 2016 and March 2017, an interesting study was carried out to discover how much GP time can be freed up if pharmacists also act as medical prescribers. It was concerned with the extent to which GP capacity could be better spent on clinical work, including special requests, immediate discharges, outpatient requests, and other prescribing issues. The time frame for this was 2 weeks prior to the study and for two equivalent periods during the study.
The work was performed across 16 practices in Scotland. Prescribing support staff were also surveyed.
The results
It was found that GP time spent on key prescribing activities was slashed significantly by around 51% (79 hours, P<0.001) per week. This equates to 4.9 hours (95% confidence interval = 3.4 to 6.4) per week per practice.
GPs and their practices also voiced an appreciation for the additional support. As well as freeing up GP capacity, practices and practitioners also identified a positive impact on staff morale and stress, as well as improvements in patient safety. Prescribing support staff themselves also indicated that the study had had a positive impact on their job satisfaction. Despite some challenges, the scheme was hailed a success on both sides.
Conclusion:
GP capacity can be easily and safely extended when specialist clinical pharmacists take on a range of prescribed duties. However, work is continuing in order to assess the impact of such service developments on prescribing cost-efficiency and clinical pharmacist medication review work.
Why have we looked at this study in particular?
Medical prescribing is at the heart of several of our most popular CPD courses aimed at nurses, midwives, paramedics, and allied health professionals across a range of disciplines.
Each PDUK course offers an in-depth examination of issues like over-prescribing and the latest medical guidelines all clinicians should be aware of.
Sign up for our specialist prescribing courses now!
The first course we highly recommend here at PDUK is My patient Is on too many medicines. What do I do?
Aimed at advanced nurse practitioners, practice nurses, community nurses, registered nurses, and other allied healthcare professionals, this half-day course looks at polypharmacy and structured medication reviews. Case studies will provide participants with a chance to use different tools that can be applied when prescribing for patients who are on multiple medications.
Worth 4 hours of CDP, the course is held online so can be completed in the comfort of your own home. The next one is due to run on the 20th January 2021 so secure your place now to avoid disappointment.
The second course we’re offering on this subject is Medicines optimisation in Hypertension and Heart Failure. Again aimed at nurses of all disciplines as well as other allied health professionals, this course focuses on pharmaceutical management of patients with hypertension and cardiac failure. It also looks at patient monitoring, particularly in regard to polypharmacy and medication review.
This course is being held online on the 24th February 2021 and is worth 4 hours over half a day. Again, it’s worth getting signed up early as it’s extremely popular.
Finally, there’s our long-running Annual NMP V300 update course: Online & F2F Options. Relevant to all non-medical prescribers with a V300, including nurses, radiographers, pharmacists, physiotherapists, podiatrists, optometrists, midwives, and paramedics, this one-day course is worth 8 hours of CPD. We’re also offering this one online during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Completion of the course fulfills the requirement for NMPs to demonstrate ongoing CPD by updating their qualification annually. All course material, evaluations, and a certificate are also provided.
Whichever course you choose, secure your place today!