Nurse prescribing has been a political and professional hot potato for years. Now, for the first time in book form, RCN Adviser Mark Jones has brought together some of the key players to debate the issues and map out a way forward. This book is filled with the arguments and the vibrant debates, which surround this ever-controversial topic, as well as an in-depth evaluation of the experiences of nurse prescribing in practice to date, and the lessons, learned from the pilot sites. Starting with a history of the initiative to date, it moves through the key issues that govern its progress. Lively, stimulating and informative, this no-holds-barred book presents the true face of arguably the most exciting nursing initiative in recent times. KEY ISSUES DISCUSSED: Politics, how can it progress through the quagmire of the law-making process? The threat to vested interests - what do other professions think? Education, is nurse prescribing a professional necessity, or a misguided attempt to increase nurses' power and influence? What knowledge base is required? Practice, what can we learn from those nurses who are prescribing now? What have the pilot sites revealed? The future, what is the way ahead for nurse prescribing? What can we learn from the experiences of nurses in the US?

Table of Contents

The History, The Waiting, The Battle. The Medical Opinion. What the Pharmacist Thinks. The Lawmakers. A LegalMinefield? Education, Education, Education. Essential Practice or Political Point? A Useful Attribute? Practice Nurse Opinions. Alternative Approaches. Protocols in Practice. Auditing the Prescribers. Can Nurses Manage It? Lessons from America. The Future.