Credit bearing module Independent and Supplementary Prescribing for Nurses and Midwives
Explore specialist knowledge and develop skills through focused study and critical enquiry.
Key facts
- Duration
- Part time: Two semesters
- Level
- Continuing professional development (CPD)
- Academic level
- 7
- Academic credits
- 40
- School
- Oxford School of Nursing and Midwifery
- Application deadline
- 1 July (for a September start)
- 1 November (for a January start)
About this course
This Independent and Supplementary Prescribing course will provide NMC registered nurses (adult, mental health, learning disability and children’s); midwives; and specialist community public health nurses with the knowledge and skills required to practise as safe, effective and competent independent and supplementary prescribers, who are able to provide and be accountable for a high professional standard of care and be accountable for that care.
Entry requirements
Entry requirements
To be considered as eligible to apply for entry onto this module you must:
- be registered with the UK Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), be a registered nurse (Level 1), registered midwife or SCPHN, and working within the United Kingdom
- meet the NMC (2023) Standards for prescribing requirements section 1
- have successfully completed an accredited Level 6 or 7 module in History Taking and Physical Assessment
- have an identified Practice Assessor and Practice Supervisor who meet the NMC (2023) Standards for student supervision and assessment and RPS (2020) Competency Framework for Designated Prescribing Practitioners
- have a current satisfactory full enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check (within the last 3 years)
- have an Honours degree or higher, or be able to provide evidence of your potential to study at Level 7
- have the support of your employer who will confirm that your post is one in which you will have the need and opportunity to act as an independent/supplementary prescribe.
This course is not available to international students who require a student sponsor to study in the UK.
Fees and funding
Fees
How and when to pay
Tuition fee instalments for the semester are due by the Monday of week 1 of each semester. Students are not liable for full fees for that semester if they leave before week 4. If the leaving date is after week 4, full fees for the semester are payable.
- For information on payment methods please see our Make a Payment page.
- For information about refunds please visit our Refund policy page.
Learning and assessment
This course consists of both taught content and e-learning activities. The taught days take the form of a range of lectures, discussions and tutorials. The e-learning activities are accessed via the Virtual Learning Environment.
Students are also required to complete a minimum of 80 hours of direct supervised practice alongside a practice supervisor/assessor. The period of educationally-led practice is a fundamental part of the course in developing the knowledge, skills and attitudes of health care professionals to prescribe. Learning in practice will be related to the medical conditions and circumstances in which you are likely to prescribe as an Independent / Supplementary Prescriber. The assessment of practice is the responsibility of the Practice Assessor with feedback from Practice Supervisors providing support, teaching and supervision of the student. Evidence gained from the student’s practice experience will be included in the Learning Log of Prescribing Evidence.
The course introduces pharmacology, legal and ethical prescribing, interpersonal skills and quality assurance aspects of prescribing. These are underpinned by reflection on your own experience, evaluation of your own performance and application of theory to practice. It also enables you to be aware of current developments within Independent/ Supplementary prescribing in the UK.
Assessment
The assessment strategy for this course is designed to assess the professional requirements for safe, effective and cost-effective prescribing and enable the students to demonstrate competency against the Royal Pharmaceutical Society (2021) A Competency Framework for all Prescribers.
Coursework consists of:
- Learning Log of Prescribing Evidence (mapped to RPS competencies, 2021)
- Personal formulary from within the individual practitioner’s scope of practice
- Evidence of satisfactory completion of a period of 80 hours of educationally led supervised practice
- Pharmacology in-class test
- Numeracy in-class test
How to apply
Before starting your application please read the Admissions Guide.
Apply through our Moodle Portal.
Our courses are reviewed regularly as part of our quality assurance framework, so module availability and course structures may vary from what is listed here. On rare occasions, we may also need to make updates to our course programmes after publication; for full details, please visit our changes to programmes page (opens in a new tab)