Independent Prescribing

Entry requirements

Admissions to the course are undertaken through a process of a university application followed by a supplementary course application form. You will be required to submit confirmation of your prior experience in relation to your intended prescribing role. Your application will need to be supported by your line manager/employer(s) and where relevant agreement of your organisation's non-medical prescribing lead.

Months of entry

March, September

Course content

A multi-professional course to enable you to develop the consultation and prescribing skills required to qualify as an independent prescriber within your area of practice.

This 40 credit Masters course (level 7) is delivered part time over 6 months and comprises two compulsory 20 credit modules which are taken consecutively and an overarching non-credit bearing module that includes the period of supervised learning in practice and portfolio. All modules must be passed to be awarded the Practice Certificate in Independent Prescribing. Forty credits is approximately 400 hours of student endeavour.

This course is currently open to pharmacists, physiotherapists, podiatrists, nurses, midwives, paramedics and therapeutic radiographers.

At Masters level you are expected to act autonomously in planning and implementing tasks. You will need to demonstrate that you are able to systematically deal with complex issues and make sound judgements, sometimes in the absence of incomplete data.

The course adopts a blended learning approach including interactive face-to-face study days, case studies, discussions and on-line learning. Teaching also includes working with simulated patients to develop communication and clinical skills. Your development is supported by learning in practice under the supervision of your designated prescribing practitioner (DPP). Please note that a designated medical practitioner (DMP) is still required for GPhC and HCPC registrants until the course has been reviewed by these regulatory bodies. NMC registrants will require the support of a practice supervisor in addition to the DPP. You should be spending at least 50% of your supervised learning in practice time with your DMP. Time with any other practitioners can support your learning and should be agreed in advance with your DMP.

There is a strong emphasis on self-directed learning to ensure that the content is related to your area of practice. The blending learning approach allows flexibility in managing your learning to fit in with professional and personal commitments.