BIOS today joined with other allied health professions to call on the UK Government to extend independent prescribing responsibilities to orthoptists and other health professions, to deliver better patient care and reduce pressure on health services across the four nations.
The #PrescribingNow campaign is calling on the UK Government to use the powers it has under the Medicines and Medical Devices Act (2021) to extend independent prescribing responsibilities to dietitians, occupational therapists, orthoptists, diagnostic radiographers, and speech and language therapists where it is safe and appropriate to do so within the scope of their professional practice.
The campaign is a partnership between the British Dietetic Association, the Royal College of Occupational Therapists, the Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, the Society of Radiographers, and BIOS.
As part of the campaign, we are:
- Writing to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care
- Writing to all MPs and members of the House of Lords
- Providing the facility for individual AHPs and others to email their MPs
More information, including how you can support the campaign, is accessible on our #PrescribingNow webpage.
Allowing more allied health professionals, such as speech and language therapists, dietitians, orthoptists, diagnostic radiographers, and occupational therapists, to prescribe medication would ensure people get the medication they need without having to seek assistance from another healthcare professional.
With the NHS struggling under the weight of ever-increasing waiting lists, this simple change would reduce barriers for patients and relieve pressure on clinical staff. The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists, the British Dietetic Association, the British and Irish Orthoptic Society, the Royal College of Occupational Therapists, and the Society of Radiographers, with the support of the British Association of Prosthetists and Orthotists, have written to the Secretary of State for health and social care asking for prescribing responsibilities to be extended.
