Electronic Medicines Management and Non-medical Prescribing

In the UK, the right to prescribe medicines was assumed by the medical profession following the 1858 Medicine Act and, during the century that followed, the roles of the health professions in relation to medicines have become well demarcated: doctors prescribed medicines, pharmacists dispensed or supplied medicines and nurses administered medicines.

Abstract

Traditionally, in healthcare, the prescribing of medicines has been the preserve of the doctor. In the UK, the right to prescribe medicines was assumed by the medical profession following the 1858 Medicine Act and, during the century that followed, the roles of the health professions in relation to medicines have become well demarcated: doctors prescribed medicines, pharmacists dispensed or supplied medicines and nurses administered medicines. This distinction has persisted across the health professions, especially in secondary care, until relatively recently.