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Prescribing trends over time by non-medical independent prescribers in primary care settings across Wales (2011-2018): a secondary database analysis.

ABSTRACT: INTRODUCTION:As of 2015, as part of the implementation of the Welsh Government primary care plan and primary care clusters, the Welsh Government has encouraged non-medical healthcare professionals working in primary care to train as independent prescribers (IPs). OBJECTIVES:This research aimed to identify the number of NMIPs in primary care in Wales and describe their prescribing trend of items between 2011 and 2018, in order to compare their prescribing pattern before and after the implementation of primary care clusters for Wales. DESIGN:Retrospective secondary data analysis and interrupted time series analysis in order to compare prescribing by non-medical independent prescribers (NMIPs) preimplementation and postimplementation of primary care clusters across Wales. RESULTS:Over the study period, 600 NMIPs (nurses n=474?and pharmacists n=104) had prescribed at least one item. The number of nurse IPs increased by 108% and pharmacists by 325% (pharmacists had the largest increase between July 2015 and March 2018). The number of items prescribed by NMIPs increased over time by an average of 1380 per month (95%?CI 904 to 1855, p<0.001) after the implementation of primary care clusters compared with 496 (95% CI 445 to 548, p<0.001) prior its implementation. Approximately one-third of the items prescribed by NMIPs was within Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (HB) with only 4% in Powys Teaching HB. CONCLUSION:The number of NMIPs and their volume of prescribing in primary care in Wales has increased following the implementation of primary care clusters in 2015. This suggests that the Government's recommendations of using NMIPs in primary care have been implemented. Future studies should focus on efficiency and quality of prescribing by NMIPs in primary care.

SUBMITTER: Alghamdi SSA

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7554451 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Prescribing trends over time by non-medical independent prescribers in primary care settings across Wales (2011-2018): a secondary database analysis.

Alghamdi Saeed Saad A SSA Hodson Karen K Deslandes Paul P Gillespie David D Haines Kath K Hulme Elliott E Courtenay Molly M Deslandes Rhian R

BMJ open 20201013 10

<h4>Introduction</h4>As of 2015, as part of the implementation of the Welsh Government primary care plan and primary care clusters, the Welsh Government has encouraged non-medical healthcare professionals working in primary care to train as independent prescribers (IPs).<h4>Objectives</h4>This research aimed to identify the number of NMIPs in primary care in Wales and describe their prescribing trend of items between 2011 and 2018, in order to compare their prescribing pattern before and after t ...[more]

PMID: 33051229

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Project description:BackgroundA growing number of countries legislate for nurses to have medication prescribing authority although it is a contested issue. The UK is one of these countries, giving authority to nurses with additional qualifications since 1992 and incrementally widened the scope of nurse prescribing, most recently in 2006. The policy intention for primary care was to improve efficiency in service delivery through flexibility between medical and nursing roles. The extent to which this has occurred is uncertain. This study investigated nurses prescribing activities, over time, in English primary care settings.MethodsA secondary data analysis of a national primary care prescription database 2006-2010 and National Health Service workforce database 2010 was undertaken.ResultsThe numbers of nurses issuing more than one prescription annually in primary care rose from 13,391 in 2006 to 15,841 in 2010. This represented forty three percent of those with prescribing qualifications and authorisation from their employers. The number of items prescribed by nurses rose from 1.1% to 1.5% of total items prescribed in primary care. The greatest volume of items prescribed by independent nurse prescribers was in the category of penicillins, followed by dressings. However, the category where independent nurse prescribers contributed the largest proportion of all primary care prescriptions was emergency contraception (9.1%). In contrast, community practitioner nurse prescribers' greatest volume and contribution was in the category of gel and colloid dressings (27%), medicated stockings (14.5%) and incontinence appliances (4.2%). There were slightly higher rates of nurse prescribing in areas with higher levels of socio-economic deprivation and fewer physicians per capita, but the correlations were weak and warrant further investigation.ConclusionsThe percentage of prescriptions written by nurses in primary care in England is very small in comparison to physicians. Our findings suggest that nurse prescribing is used where it is seen to have relative advantage by all stakeholders, in particular when it supports efficiency in nursing practice and also health promotion activities by nurses in general practice. It is in these areas that there appears to be flexibility in the prescribing role between nurses and general practitioners.

Project description:ObjectiveThe Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care in Nursing Homes focuses on but is not limited to long-term care (LTC) residents with dementia; the potential impact on residents with other diagnoses is unclear. We sought to determine whether resident subpopulations experienced changes in antipsychotic and mood stabilizer prescribing.DesignRepeated cross-sectional analysis of a 20% Medicare sample, 2011-2014.Setting and participantFee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries with Part D coverage in LTC (n = 562,485) and a secondary analysis limited to persons with depression or bipolar disorder (n = 139,071).MethodsMain outcome was quarterly predicted probability of treatment with an antipsychotic or mood stabilizer.ResultsFrom 2011 to 2014, the adjusted predicted probability (APP) of antipsychotic treatment fell from 0.120 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.119-0.121] to 0.100 (95% CI 0.099-0.101; P < .001). Use decreased for all age, sex, and racial/ethnic groups; the decline was larger for persons with dementia (P < .001). The APP of mood stabilizer use grew from 0.140 (95% CI 0.139-0.141) to 0.185 (95% CI 0.184-0.186), growth slightly larger among persons without dementia (P < .001). Among persons with depression or bipolar disorder, the APP of antipsychotic treatment increased from 0.081 (95% CI 0.079-0.082) to 0.087 (95% CI 0.085-0.088; P < .001); APP of mood stabilizer treatment grew more, from 0.193 (95% CI 0.190-0.196) to 0.251 (0.248-0.253; P < .001). Quetiapine was the most commonly prescribed antipsychotic. The most widely prescribed mood stabilizer was gabapentin, prescribed to 70.5% of those who received a mood stabilizer by the end of 2014.Conclusions and implicationsThe likelihood of antipsychotic and mood stabilizer treatment did not decline for residents with depression or bipolar disorder, for whom such prescribing may be appropriate but who were not excluded from the Partnership's antipsychotic quality measure. Growth in mood stabilizer use was widespread, and largely driven by growth in gabapentin prescribing.

Project description:OBJECTIVE:To identify temporal trends in outpatient antibiotic use and antibiotic prescribing practice among older adults in a high income country. DESIGN:Observational study using United States Medicare administrative claims in 2011-15. SETTING:Medicare, a US national healthcare program for which 98% of older adults are eligible. PARTICIPANTS:4.5 million fee-for-service Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 years old and older. MAIN OUTCOME MEASUREMENTS:Overall rates of antibiotic prescription claims, rates of potentially appropriate and inappropriate prescribing, rates for each of the most frequently prescribed antibiotics, and rates of antibiotic claims associated with specific diagnoses. Trends in antibiotic use were estimated by multivariable regression adjusting for beneficiaries' demographic and clinical covariates. RESULTS:The number of antibiotic claims fell from 1364.7 to 1309.3 claims per 1000 beneficiaries per year in 2011-14 (adjusted reduction of 2.1% (95% confidence interval 2.0% to 2.2%)), but then rose to 1364.3 claims per 1000 beneficiaries per year in 2015 (adjusted reduction of 0.20% over 2011-15 (0.09% to 0.30%)). Potentially inappropriate antibiotic claims fell from 552.7 to 522.1 per 1000 beneficiaries over 2011-14, an adjusted reduction of 3.9% (3.7% to 4.1%). Individual antibiotics had heterogeneous changes in use. For example, azithromycin claims per beneficiary decreased by 18.5% (18.2% to 18.8%) while levofloxacin claims increased by 27.7% (27.2% to 28.3%). Azithromycin use associated with each of the potentially appropriate and inappropriate respiratory diagnoses decreased, while levofloxacin use associated with each of those diagnoses increased. CONCLUSION:Among US Medicare beneficiaries, overall antibiotic use and potentially inappropriate use in 2011-15 remained steady or fell modestly, but individual drugs had divergent changes in use. Trends in drug use across indications were stronger than trends in use for individual indications, suggesting that guidelines and concerns about antibiotic resistance were not major drivers of change in antibiotic use.

Dataset Information

Prescribing trends over time by non-medical independent prescribers in primary care settings across Wales (2011-2018): a secondary database analysis.

Publications

Prescribing trends over time by non-medical independent prescribers in primary care settings across Wales (2011-2018): a secondary database analysis.

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