The National Health Service (General Medical Services) (Scotland) Amendment (No. 3) Regulations 2003

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the National Health Service (General Medical Services) (Scotland) Regulations 1995 (“the principal Regulations”) which regulate the terms on which doctors provide general medical services under the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 (“the 1978 Act”).

Part II makes changes to the principal Regulations arising out of the designation of a new category of prescriber of medicines and appliances for human use. Under amendments to the Prescription Only Medicines (Human Use) Order 1997 which came into force on 4th April 2003, “supplementary prescribers”, who are appropriately qualified nurses and pharmacists, have been given new rights to prescribe prescription only medicines under an agreed clinical management plan for an individual patient. These “supplementary prescribers” will also be qualified to prescribe other medicines and appliances under such plans.

In particular–

• regulation 2 deletes the definition of “nurse prescriber” in the principal Regulations;

• regulation 3(a) inserts new definitions of “supplementary prescriber” and “independent nurse prescriber”, and other related definitions, to differentiate more clearly between the different categories of nurses who may prescribe;

• regulation 3(b) and (c) amends the rules relating to the supply by doctors of drugs and appliances on prescription forms signed by nurse prescribers to relate both to supplementary prescribers and to nurses who are independent nurse prescribers;

• regulation 3(d) requires doctors who employ supplementary prescribers to have arrangements in place to ensure that the supplementary prescribers they employ comply with the regime of control relating to supplementary prescribing.

Part III makes other unrelated changes to the principal Regulations.

Regulation 4 removes the requirement on Health Boards and primary care NHS trusts to delete from the list of patients in its area, for whom each doctor is responsible, the name of a person serving a prison sentence or sentences totalling in aggregate more than two years.

Regulation 5 introduces a requirement on doctors employing deputies or assistants to obtain and check clinical references before engaging them.