There is a danger extending prescribing too widely
This article was originally published in Scrip
Executive Summary
Requiring doctors in the EU to sacrifice or share their traditional powers is tantamount to starting a fight. This has been no more evident than in the field of prescribing. The idea behind nurse prescribing in the UK was that, over time it would reduce doctors’ workloads, thereby allowing them more time for complicated conditions and more complex treatments. However, prior to the introduction of independent nurse prescribing in the UK on 1 May 2006, doctors branded the proposals both “irresponsible” and “dangerous”. The British Medical Association’s General Practitioner Committee (GPC) has warned that the plan of the British parliament to remove all restrictions on allowing nurses to prescribe medicine would make them a cheaper alternative to doctors.