PRESCRIBING by suitably-trained pharmacists and nurses offers similar outcomes to prescribing by doctors in the management of chronic conditions, according to a new Cochrane review.
Pooled clinical outcomes and patient satisfaction across 45 studies of nurse or pharmacist prescribing, mostly in the US and UK, were compared with doctor prescribing.
Most studies were of chronic disease management in primary care settings in high income countries - 25 from the US and six from the UK.
Main therapeutic areas included blood pressure therapy, hypercholesterolaemia treatment and blood sugar control in diabetes patients as well as adherence to medication, patient satisfaction and health-related quality of life.
The review provides some reassurance that properly-trained independent prescribers can prescribe as effectively as doctors for patients with long-term conditions, the authors concluded.
They suggested nurse or pharmacist prescribers may be a useful addition to a chronic disease management service such as clinics targeting blood pressure or diabetes - see the review HERE.
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