The Allied Health Professions (AHP) Medicines Project is a joint initiative by NHS England and the Department of Health to extend prescribing, supply and administration of medicines to Allied Health Professions, with the aim of facilitating service redesign; increasing patient choice; improving access to medicines; and making the best use of allied health professionals’ skills, while maintaining patient safety.
The College of Paramedics have been campaigning for a number of years to review the current legislation around non-medical independent prescribing and the case for paramedic independent prescribers.
Current proposals that the NHS England AHP Medicines team are focusing on are:
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Independent prescribing by therapeutic and diagnostic radiographers
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Independent prescribing by paramedics
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Supplementary prescribing by dietitians
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Use of exemptions from Medicines Act Regulations by Orthoptists.
NHS England, in partnership with the College of Paramedics, the Society and College of Radiographers, the British and Irish Orthoptic Society, and the British Dietetic Association, have developed a case of need for each of the proposals outlined above based on improving quality of care for patients in relation to safety, clinical outcomes and experience, while also improving efficiency of service delivery and value for money.
Approval of the cases of need from the NHS England medical and nursing senior management teams was received in May, with the Department of Health's non-medical prescribing board approving the cases of need in July.
Ministerial approval has now been received, allowing the commencement of preparatory work to take all four proposals forward to public consultation. The consultations and supporting documents will be developed over the summer with the aim of seeking ministerial approval to publish the consultations later in the year. Following public consultation, there will be significant further work to be undertaken, including submission of consultation findings for consideration by the Commission on Human Medicines, who will make recommendations to ministers regarding any potential changes to medicines legislation in line with the above proposals.
The case for investment in specialist and advanced paramedic practice is well known, especially since the publication of the PEEP Report and the Urgent and Emergency Care Review. The College of Paramedics is currently working towards publishing the latest version of the Paramedic Career and Competency Framework to be published by the end of this year. This will outline a significant step forward in paramedic practice and has been undertaken in cooperation with Health Education England, with paramedic independent prescribing being a key part of this objective.
The College of Paramedics is working with the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives (AACE) and Health Education England (HEE) as funding partners to provide a project officer who will work with NHS England's Allied Health Professions (AHP) Medicines Project lead.
The College is delighted to be working with NHS England and the three Allied Health Professions also involved in the project. It is encouraging and rewarding to see that the process is moving forward and we are grateful for the ongoing support of the membership of the College of Paramedics.