TRANSCRIPT
It's the major change set to transform the scope of practice for some healthcare professionals.
Registered Nurses nationwide can now begin training so they can administer prescribed medications in a clinical setting.
The upskilling will involve a university postgraduate qualification.
But as Veronica Casey, the Chair of Nursing and Midwifery Board, explains, that is far from all it will involve.
"There's other requirements- that they have to have three years of clinical practice after being initially registered. The education is clearly a very important component of this standard, but there are other pieces that come to the board for the practitioner to be endorsed."
Danielle McMullen from the Australian Medical Association says this change will ensure more collaboration between medical professionals to ensure patients get better care.
"The model of care of nurse prescribing that's been the outcome here does encourage that team-based care because it does require nurses to be working in partnership with doctors or nurse practitioners to make sure that that prescribing is really safe and effective."
Professor Jane Mills is from the Rural Health School at La Trobe University.
She says the move is designed to address critical health workforce shortages, too.
"Regional and rural clients in particular, because the shortage of practitioners in the regions is quite acute, which means that sometimes people can wait for very long periods of time before they can actually access a clinician."
Frances Rice is from the Australian Royal College of Nursing.
She says the move will expand people's access to medication.
"There will be an uptake in hospital settings, but I think the biggest bang for our buck will be in those outside of hospital settings.... enabling people to have more timely and affordable access to medications in the community."
At this stage, qualified health professionals will be able to prescribe all medications.... but there's a note of caution, as well.
There are calls for so-called Schedule Eight controlled drugs, or those considered highly addictive to be off-limits for nurses to prescribe.
Ms McMullen says a higher level of professional expertise may be required in these circumstances.
"These are riskier medicines like morphine and other opioids or other drugs of dependence and we do think it's really important an experienced prescriber is involved in that."
While the model of practice is still being worked out... training is expected to begin next year.
