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 programme is for GPhC and HCPC registered professionals only.
The structure of the NHS, healthcare and service delivery is changing at a fast pace. New roles across healthcare services are developing and supporting a multi-disciplinary team approach to improving patient outcomes. This includes supporting patients to access a range of healthcare professionals with the ability to prescribe appropriately and safely within their scope of practice.
This 40 credit Masters course (level 7) is delivered part-time over six 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. 40 credits is approximately 400 hours of student endeavour.
This course is currently open to pharmacists, physiotherapists, podiatrists, 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 online 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). You should be spending at least 50% of your supervised learning in practice time with your DPP. Time with any other practitioners can support your learning and should be agreed in advance with your DPP.
There is a strong emphasis on self-directed learning to ensure that the content is contextualised to your area of practice. The blending learning approach allows flexibility in managing your learning to support professional and personal commitments.
There are a variety of assessment methods to ensure safe and effective practice. These include a case presentation, critical reflection, OSCE (objective structured clinical examinations), 24 mandatory SCRIPT modules and completion of a structured learning and reflective portfolio.
Please note as you are qualified, registered and practicing professionals, you are subject to the fitness to practice procedure for your professional regulator.
UK students only, you must be registered to practice with your professional and regulatory body.