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Table 1 Legislative authority and NHS mechanisms for nurses to prescribe medicines in the UK from 1992

From: Trends over time in prescribing by English primary care nurses: a secondary analysis of a national prescription database

Year

Legislation and NHS mechanisms

1992

Legislation for specialist qualified community nurses (district nurses and health visitors) with extra prescribing qualifications to prescribe from a limited nurse formulary [42].

1996

Legislation for a limited Nurse Prescribers’ Formulary for district nurses and health visitors, which included dressings, medicines for skin conditions and catheter management [43].

1998

The National Health Service (NHS) Executive authorised a national introduction of nurse prescribing by district nurses and health visitors, with additional prescribing qualifications, using the Nurse Prescribers’ Formulary for District Nurses and Health [44].

2001

Legislation passed for the extension of prescribing authority to nurses, midwives and health visitors, with additional qualifications as independent prescribers and supplementary prescribers (i.e. nurses with additional qualifications given authority to prescribe from a patient specific medicines list prescribed by a medical or other independent prescriber) [45].

2002

The NHS introduced. The Nurse Prescribers extended formulary (NPEF) list, including 140 prescription only medicines (POMs) all general sales list pharmacy medicines, for independent nurse prescribers undertaking an extended prescriber qualification [46, 47].

2006

Legislation for nurse independent prescribers to prescribe any licensed medicine including some Controlled Drugs, for any medical condition within their clinical competence [48].