98727 Quality and Safety in Medicines
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Credit points: 6 cp
Subject level:
Postgraduate
Result type: Grade and marksDescription
Safe and rational medicine management and prescribing requires an understanding of the processes contributing to medicine use, as well as acquiring the essential skills and attitudes required for good prescribing. This subject focuses on the skills, knowledge, attitudes, values and abilities that underpin competent and capable medicine management for prescribers and non-prescribers. The principles, aims and goals of the National Medicines Policy and National Strategy for Quality Use of Medicines are explored and discussed. Students have the opportunity to reflect and analyse how these principles influence their practice in accordance to Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) standards for practice. Using a clinical decision-making framework, students apply the principles of the World Health Organisation's Guide to Good Prescribing, learning how to select between different medicines on the basis of comparative efficacy, safety, cost and suitability in order to prescribe from a defined scope of practice.
This subject highlights the importance of ensuring that consumers are central to all processes. Students explore the use of teaching and learning strategies to promote patient understanding of their medicines and consider the difficulty of adherence to treatment. Commonwealth and State laws pertaining to the control of medicines are also considered.
Subject learning objectives (SLOs)
| A. | Analyse their practice and duty of care in accordance with legislation and regulation relating to medicine management, prescribing and administration of pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapeutic interventions (AHPRA 3.3) |
|---|---|
| B. | Analyses their professional integrity and ethical conduct in relation to therapeutic product manufacturers and pharmaceutical organisations (AHPRA 2.1, 3.1) |
| C. | Explain the principles of good prescribing practice using a step wise approach considering the risk/benefit of medicines prescribed (AHPRA 2.3, 3.1) |
| D. | Recommend and justify the selection and integration of both pharmacological and non- pharmacological therapeutic interventions into the management plan in consultation with the patient/client in collaboration with the pharmacist and other health providers if required (AHPRA 2.2, 2.3, 3.1, 3.2) |
| E. | Prescribe therapeutic interventions based on accurate knowledge of patient characteristics, research evidence and concurrent therapies for the person receiving treatment (AHPRA 1.1, 1.2, 2.2, 2.3, 3.1) |
| F. | Develop a personal formulary based on best evidence for the most common conditions encountered in their specialty area of practice (AHPRA 2.3, 3.1, 3.3) |
Course intended learning outcomes (CILOs)
This subject also contributes specifically to the following graduate attributes:
- Are reflective critical thinkers who examine and contribute to practice, policy and research to achieve clinical excellence and enhance health outcomes (1.0)
- Are visionary, innovative and responsive leaders (2.0)
- Are socially, culturally and ethically aware and accountable when engaging with health care consumers, families/significant others, interdisciplinary teams, communities, organisations and authorities (3.0)
- Communicate effectively and professionally in diverse and dynamic situations (4.0)
- Embody the professional qualities appropriate to the scope of their role (5.0)
Teaching and learning strategies
Orientation activities
Preparation for the Session - students are expected to undertake activities prior to the first week. These activities include online readings, videos, interaction with peers, and are important in helping students prepare for the subject's Assessment Tasks. This also provides students with an opportunity to meet and interact with peers. Students will learn through independent learning activities, group work, peer review, and participation in the workshops.
Independent learning activities
Relevant readings, videos and activities will be made available online relevant to the topic of the week. Students are expected to come to workshops prepared. This will enhance the students’ ability to progress successfully throughout the subject and complete assessment items effectively. The online material aims to enhance students’ understanding of the topic or delve deeper into a more specific area, compare experiences and ideas with others, and gain feedback. Information and links to all these learning activities can be accessed via Canvas as well as the subject outline.
Workshops
Workshops will provide opportunities for group activities and discussion, self-assessment, peer review and formative feedback from the subject coordinator. Students are required to attend all workshops, as they specifically prepare students for the subject’s Assessment Tasks.
Feedback
Feedback will be frequent and takes several forms including self-assessment, peer review, automatic feedback from interactive activities e.g. quizzes, and from the subject coordinator. Formative feedback throughout the subject aims to increase student performance at summative assessments.
The subject assessments are designed to be authentic to practice. The assessment tasks provide students with the opportunity to develop their chosen specialty skills and reflect on their current and future practice.
Content (topics)
- Regulatory frameworks associated with medicine management and safety: National Medicines Policy, Quality use of Medicines and the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS medicines, collaborative arrangements, additional endorsements)
- Principles of good prescribing: a stepwise approach to prescribing considering the risk/benefit of medicines prescribed (based on World Health Organization Guide to Good Prescribing and NPS Prescribing Competencies Framework)
- Medicine safety: problems resulting from prescribing, dispensing and administering medications. Promoting medicine adherence and self-management and incident management
- Designing and developing protocols and a personal formulary
- Key partners in medicines management in ethical assessment and promotion/ marketing information of medicines
- Contemporaneous Global and National issues inclusive of medicines in Indigenous health
Assessment
Assessment task 1: Medication Incident Management
| Intent: | The intent of this assessment is for students to identify the policies, procedures and legislation approved to regulate incident management. Students will be able to demonstrate how the principles of the Quality Use of Medicines and good prescribing impact medication incidents. Students are also provided an opportunity to develop skills in standard incident report development, writing and management.
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|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): A, C, E and F This assessment task contributes to the development of graduate attribute(s): 1.0, 3.0, 4.0 and 5.0 |
| Type: | Report |
| Weight: | 30% |
| Length: | 1000 words +/- 10% (excluding references and appendices) Appendix to include NPS Medicine Wise certificate for online course -Quality Use of Medicinces for Health professional Students CPD 2 hrs |
Assessment task 2: NPS Medicinewise Learning: National Prescribing Curriculum
| Intent: | The intent of this assessment task is to allow the student to practice the principles of safe prescribing using examples of patient cases. Student will also be exposed to the extensive resources available from the NPS Medicinewise. This assessment provides students with an opportunity to enhance their skills of personal reflection through analysis and appraisal of learning opportunities, including application of their own clinical significance. |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): C, E and F This assessment task contributes to the development of graduate attribute(s): 1.0, 2.0, 3.0 and 4.0 |
| Type: | Reflection |
| Weight: | 20% |
| Length: | Four (4) NPS MedicinceWise National Prescribing Curriculum Module certificates of completion The 5 minute audio recording (reflection) +/- 10% (the marker will stop the recording at 5 minutes 30 seconds) Reference list is to be submitted through Turnitin |
Assessment task 3: Treatment Plan
| Intent: | The intent of this assessment task is to allow the student to demonstrate their knowledge and application of the step-wise approach to safe prescribing and to begin the process of formulating their own formulary. |
|---|---|
| Objective(s): | This assessment task addresses subject learning objective(s): A, B, C, D, E and F This assessment task contributes to the development of graduate attribute(s): 1.0, 3.0, 4.0 and 5.0 |
| Type: | Case study |
| Weight: | 50% |
| Length: | 2500 words +/- 10% (excluding references and appendices). The formulary is included in the word count. |
Recommended texts
Bryant, B., Knights, K., Darroch, S., & Rowland, A. (2019). Pharmacology for health professionals (5th ed.). Mosby Elsevier.
Rang, H. P., & Dale, M.M. (2016). Pharmacology (Rang and Dale's pharmacology) (8th ed.). Churchill Livingstone.
References
Australian Medicines Handbook. 2020. Australian Medicines Handbook. (available via the UTS library website online/electronically)
Clinical Excellence Commission. (2020). Incident management, PD2020_047. https://www1.health.nsw.gov.au/pds/ActivePDSDocuments/PD2020_047.pdf
Commonwealth of Australia. (1999). National medicines policy, accessed January 2022, chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/viewer.html?pdfurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww1.health.gov.au%2Finternet%2Fmain%2Fpublishing.nsf%2FContent%2FB2FFBF72029EEAC8CA257BF0001BAF3F%2F%2524File%2FNMP2000.pdf&clen=167686&chunk=true
Commonwealth of Australia. (20020) The National Strategy for Quality Use of Medicines. Accessed January 2022, chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/viewer.html?pdfurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww1.health.gov.au%2Finternet%2Fmain%2Fpublishing.nsf%2FContent%2FEEA5B39AA0A63F18CA257BF0001DAE08%2F%2524File%2FNational-Strategy-for-Quality-Use-of-Medicines.pdf&clen=243667
Kocabasoglu, Y.E. (1997). Guide to good prescribing: A practical manual. World Health Organization.
Lum, E., Mitchell, C., Coombes, I. (2013). The competent prescriber: 12 core competencies for safe prescribing. Australian Prescriber, 36:13-6, accessed January 2022, https://www.nps.org.au/australian-prescriber/articles/the-competent-prescriber-12-core-competencies-for-safe-prescribing
NPSMedicineWise, viewed January 2022 http://www.nps.org.au/
NPS MedicineWise. (2021). Prescribing Competencies Framework: embedding quality use of medicines into practice (2nd Edition). Viewed January 2022, https://www.nps.org.au/prescribing-competencies-framework
Nursing & Midwifery Board of Australia. (2021). Nurse practitioner standards for practice, viewed January 2022, https://www.nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au/codes-guidelines-statements/professional-standards/nurse-practitioner-standards-of-practice.aspx
Nursing & Midwifery Board of Australia. (2016). Registered nurse stamdards for practice., viewed January 2022, https://www.nursingmidwiferyboard.gov.au/Codes-Guidelines-Statements/Professional-standards/registered-nurse-standards-for-practice.aspx
Staunton, P., & Chiarella, M. (2017). Law for nurses and midwives (8th ed.). Elsevier Australia.
Willihnganz, M.J. (2017). Study guide for basic pharmacology for nurses. Elsevier. Winn,
Woo, T.M., & Robinson, M.V. (2016.) Pharmacotherapeutics for advance practice nurse prescribers (4th ed.) F.A. Davis Co.
Woo, T.M., & Wynne, A.L. (2011.) Pharmacotherapeutics for nurse practitioners prescribers (3rd ed.) F.A. Davis Co.
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