Practice Certificate in Independent and Supplementary Prescribing – Level 7

Entry requirements

Minimum entry criteria vary slightly for each profession.

The key criteria are numeracy skills.

Potential students must:

• Be able to demonstrate support from their employer/sponsor including confirmation that the entrant will have appropriate supervised practice in the clinical area in which they are expected to prescribe. For Nurses/Midwives a Practice Supervisor (PS) and a Practice Assessor (PA). For Allied Health Professionals, a Designated Medical Practitioner (DMP) and for Pharmacists a Designated Prescribing Practitioner (DPP) - see supervised practice section below. This person/s must be identified prior to applying for the course.
• Be able to demonstrate medicines and clinical governance arrangements are in place to support safe and effective supplementary and/or independent prescribing.
• Be in the clinical field in which you intend to prescribe in the year preceding application
• Provide evidence of an enhanced Disclosure and Barring check (Allied Health Professionals within the last 3 months)
• Show evidence of ability to study at a minimum academic level three (degree).

If self-employed, students must be able to demonstrate an identified need for prescribing and that all appropriate governance arrangements are in place.

Specific entry requirements for each eligible profession

Registered Nurses and Midwives

For nurses there are different options to train as a prescriber.

Nurse independent/supplementary prescriber (NMC course code: V300).

This course leads to a dual qualification enabling use of independent or supplementary prescribing. The course is open to registered nurses or midwives qualified through UK Universities that follow the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) curriculum.

To be eligible for the V300 you must be a registered first level nurse, midwife or specialist community public health nurse with at least 1 year post registration experience. You must be deemed competent by your employer to undertake the programme.

Community Practitioner Nurse Prescriber (CPNP)

The course is open to community specialist practitioners such as district nurses, school nurses and health visitors. On qualification, you can prescribe from the ‘Nursing Formulary for Community Practitioners’ (NMC course code: V150). Please visit this course page for more information.

Pharmacist

To train as an independent/supplementary prescriber you must:

• Have at least two years' appropriate patient-orientated experience in a UK hospital, community or primary care setting following your pre-registration year.
• Have identified an area of clinical practice in which to develop prescribing skills and have up-to-date clinical, pharmacological and pharmaceutical knowledge relevant to your intended area of prescribing practice.

If your application is successful, you may be eligible to have your course funded by NHS England.

Physiotherapist and Podiatrists/Chiropodists

In order to train as an independent/supplementary prescriber you need to:

• Be registered with the HCPC in one of the relevant Allied Health Professions
• Be professionally practising in an environment where there is an identified need to regularly use independent prescribing or supplementary prescribing
• Have normally at least 3 years relevant post-qualification experience in the clinical area in which you will be prescribing.

and

• Be working at an advanced practitioner or equivalent level
• Be able to demonstrate how you reflect on your own performance and take responsibility for your own Continuing Professional Development (CPD) including development of networks for support, reflection and learning.

Dietician

If you are a dietician, you can undertake training to use supplementary prescribing if you:

• Are registered with the HCPC
• Are professionally practising in an environment where there is an identified need for you to regularly use supplementary prescribing
• Have normally at least 3 years relevant post-qualification experience in the clinical area in which you will be prescribing.

and

• Are working at an advanced practitioner or equivalent level
• Are able to demonstrate how you reflect on your own performance and take responsibility for your own Continuing Professional Development (CPD) including development of networks for support, reflection and learning.

Radiographers

Therapeutic radiographers can train as independent/supplementary prescribers. Diagnostic radiographers can train as supplementary prescribers. In order to train you need to:

• Be registered with the HCPC in one of the relevant Allied Health Professions
• Be professionally practising in an environment where there is an identified need to regularly use independent prescribing or supplementary prescribing
• Have normally at least 3 years relevant post-qualification experience in the clinical area in which you will be prescribing.

and

• Be working at an advanced practitioner or equivalent level
• Be able to demonstrate how you reflect on your own performance and take responsibility for your own Continuing Professional Development (CPD) including development of networks for support, reflection and learning.

Paramedics

Paramedics can train as independent/supplementary prescribers. In order to train you need to:

• Be registered with the HCPC in one of the relevant Allied Health Professions
• Be professionally practising in an environment where there is an identified need to regularly use independent prescribing
• Have normally at least 3 years relevant post-qualification experience in the clinical area in which you will be prescribing

and

• Be working at an advanced practitioner or equivalent level as defined by Health Education England in collaboration with NHS England and the Allied Healthcare Professions professional bodies
• Be able to demonstrate how you reflect on your own performance and take responsibility for your own Continuing Professional Development (CPD) including development of networks for support, reflection and learning.

Supervised Practice

To prepare as a prescriber, you are required to undergo a period of learning and assessment in practice that is directed and assessed by the following:

For Nurses and Midwives

The Practice Assessor (PA) is a registered healthcare professional and an experienced prescriber with suitable equivalent qualifications for the programme the student is undertaking.

The Practice Supervisor (PS) must have:

• Active prescribing competence applicable to the areas in which they will be supervising
• Appropriate patient-facing clinical and diagnostic skills
• Supported or supervised other healthcare professionals
• The ability to assess patient-facing clinical and diagnostic skills.

For Allied Health Professionals

The student must identify a Designated Prescribing Practitioner (DPP) who:

• Is a registered practitioner within a GP practice and is either vocationally trained or is in possession of a certificate of equivalent experience from the Joint Committee for Post-graduate Training in General Practice Certificate OR is a specialist registrar, clinical assistant or a consultant within an NHS Trust or other NHS employer OR other Independent Prescriber, from any appropriate healthcare profession
• The DPP must have agreed to provide supervision, support and shadowing opportunities for the student.
• Has normally had at least three years’ recent clinical experience for a group of patients/clients in the relevant field of practice
• Has experience or training in teaching and/or supervising appropriate to their role (this can be demonstrated by adherence to the Department of Health Guidance (2001).
• Normally works with the trainee prescriber. If this is not possible (such as in nurse-led services or community pharmacy), arrangements can be agreed for another doctor to take on the role of the DPP, provided the above criteria are met and the learning in practice relates to the clinical area in which the trainee prescriber will ultimately be carrying out their prescribing role.

For Pharmacists

Pharmacist independent prescribers in training will prescribe under the supervision of a Designated Prescribing Practitioner (DPP).

A DPP is a registered healthcare professional and an experienced prescriber with suitable equivalent qualifications for the programme and have:

• Active prescribing competence applicable to the areas in which they will be supervising
• Appropriate patient-facing clinical and diagnostic skills
• Supported or supervised other healthcare professionals
• The ability to assess patient-facing clinical and diagnostic skills.

This person/s is required to sign the student’s application form to state that they will support the student through the practice element of the course.

Fees and funding

Students may be funded by an employer or a sponsor or can self-fund. Some courses may be funded through Health Education England funding, please contact cpdadmissions.hls@coventry.ac.uk for more information.

How to apply

Apply for this course