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Non-medical prescribing for paramedics in primary care

02 April 2021
Volume 13 · Issue 4

Abstract

As paramedic roles continue to grow and diversity, the number of paramedics working in primary care is on the rise. Knowledge of non-medical prescribing specifically for paramedics in these settings is necessary, as are new frameworks for medicines management beyond the ambulance services and for general practice in particuar. This instalment in the Prescribing Paramedic series discusses prescribing in primary care settings including some of the more practical aspects of relevance to paramedics.

In recent years, paramedics have branched out from their roots as ambulance clinicians and are now working in a variety of settings, including primary care. A figure from NHS Digital (2020) suggests that 837 paramedics were employed in primary care in March 2020, increased from 569 the previous year. This growing figure illustrates the increasing importance of prescribing and medicines management in primary care. In general, the paramedic works as an independent practitioner and, while in the ambulance setting, the traditional medicines management frameworks proved adequate, they were left lacking in general practice. The paramedic medicines exemptions (HM Government, 2012) apply only to a select few medications relevant to emergency and urgent care. While a potential solution in some settings, patient group directions (PGDs) take time and effort to set up and suffer from being unable to extend to the broader requirements of primary care. Indeed, where possible, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) (2017) recommends increasing prescriber numbers to avoid using PGDs.

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