Non-medical prescribing

Supplementary prescribing describes ‘a voluntary prescribing partnership’ between an independent prescriber (who must be a doctor or dentist) and a qualified supplementary prescriber, to implement an agreed patient-specific Clinical Management Plan (CMP) with the patient’s agreement.

A supplementary prescriber, who may be a nurse, pharmacist, physiotherapist, chiropodist/podiatrist, radiographer or optometrist who has undertaken an approved course, may prescribe and administer any Controlled Drug (excluding Schedule 1 Controlled Drugs) as long as it is contained within a specific CMP for that patient and there is agreement between the patient, independent prescriber and supplementary prescriber.

Independent prescribing is undertaken by a practitioner who is responsible and accountable for the assessment of patients with undiagnosed conditions and for decisions about the clinical management required, including prescribing. Currently, nurses, pharmacists, physiotherapists, chiropodist/podiatrists, and optometrists are the only non-medical prescribers able to use independent prescribing, although optometrists are able to prescribe from a limited formulary for eye conditions. 

Some independent prescribers (nurses and pharmacists) who have undertaken an approved course, may prescribe and administer any Controlled Drug (excluding Schedule 1 Controlled Drugs) with the exception of cocaine, dipipanone and diamorphine for the treatment of addiction. From June 2015, physiotherapist independent prescribers are only able to prescribe a restricted number of controlled drugs.