Pharmacists need to take advantage of independent prescribing pathways, says Bennett
Pharmacists need to take advantage of independent prescribing pathways, says Bennett
Independent prescribing will be a “significant point” in the history of community pharmacy, according to Royal Pharmaceutical Society chief executive Paul Bennett.
Last month, the RPS announced the launch of a comprehensive new prescribing development programme to support pharmacists across all stages of their prescribing careers. The initiative comes ahead of the NHS mandate that every newly qualified pharmacist will be an independent prescriber by 2026 — a change set to transform the future of pharmacy practice.
“It will be a significant point in our profession’s history when we look back on it,” said Bennett. “The latest figures suggest 30 per cent of registrants are now independent prescribers. There has been a building cohort of independent prescribers, which will get a boost in 2026 when more come on stream.”
Open to RPS members, the programme will begin on 23 June 2025 and run for 18 months.
It will offer practical, ongoing support for pharmacists who are new to prescribing, returning to practice, or looking to expand their scope.
The programme will cover six themes, changing the theme every three months.
Each quarter, participants will explore a new theme through flexible, bite-sized learning formats, including podcasts, blogs, webinars, and e-learning modules available via RPS Learn.
They will also be able to build a personalised prescribing portfolio and track their development using the RPS Competency Framework for Prescribers.
“It was an area of organisational focus for us significantly last year – building this prescribing competency framework that outlines the skills and the behaviours that are needed for safe and effective prescribing. “It's full of very helpful advice, points you to where other support can be obtained from, as well as our own materials. I highly commend it to anybody who is considering becoming an independent prescriber and needs support and guidan