The AMA wants its 10 new minimum prescribing standards applied to all prescribers, not just doctors.
The AMA has set minimum prescribing standards for all prescribers of S4 and S8 medications, taking direct aim at independent and autonomous pharmacy prescribing.
On Friday, AMA president Dr Danielle McMullen said she remained unconvinced that a national decision-making framework alone would resolve the inconsistency around scope of practice.
“We continue to see jurisdictions pursuing prescribing arrangements that ignore the importance of collaborative, team-based care,” she said.
“The facts remain unchanged: patients achieve the best outcomes when doctors work alongside other health professionals in coordinated models of care.”
The standards come as jurisdictions continue to expand pharmacist prescribing.
Just last week, NSW moved to expand of pharmacy prescribing to cover chronic condition management, including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
A national women’s health trial commencing in January 2027 will allow pharmacists to prescribe contraceptives and treatments for uncomplicated UTIs at a government-subsidised rate of $7.70.
The AMA’s standards primarily apply to health services, GPs, other medical professionals, and emergency care, including both admitted and non-admitted care episodes. But the association wants them applied to all authorised prescribers.
The first standard affirmed that non-medical health practitioners should prescribe only within medically supervised settings.
“Medical practitioners are currently the only health professionals trained to fully assess a person, initiate further investigations, make a diagnosis, and understand the full range of clinically appropriate treatments for a given condition, including when to prescribe and, importantly, when not to prescribe medicines,” the guidelines read.
The AMA stood firmly against any financial or non-cash benefits tied to a prescriber’s prescribing or dispensing decisions. This meant dispensing or administering must remain fully separate from prescribing.
Prescribers were also expected to establish a genuine therapeutic relationship with each patient and conduct a comprehensive medicines assessment.
Choosing the most suitable and cost-effective medicine mattered too, with mindfulness of self-harm risk, efficacy, and the patient’s ability to realistically adhere to the dosage regimen. Patients also needed to be made aware of the relevant side effects and contraindications and know to seek help if problems arose.
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A fifth standard addressed broader conflicts of interest in pharmacist and telehealth prescribing, insisting prescribers maintain clinical independence “free from undue or inappropriate influence by external parties.”
Prescribers would have to operate only within the scope established by their professional board and comply with state, territory and Commonwealth rules, including PBS restrictions, the sixth standard said.
Understanding the rules and regulations governing prescribing would ensure that patients were referred on when necessary, the guidelines said.
The seventh standard set out a mandatory referral pathway. A non-medical health practitioner must refer a patient to a registered medical practitioner if the appropriate outcomes and clinical criteria are not met within a specified timeframe.
Prescribers, in collaboration with the patient, were expected to set therapeutic goals, select medicines with input from other providers where appropriate, and develop a personalised treatment plan.
An eighth standard required prescribers to give clear instructions to delegated prescribers and to any other health professional dispensing, supplying, or administering the prescribed medicines to reduce the risk of a medication-related adverse event.
To minimise fragmented care and promote coordinated efforts, the ninth standard held that, with patient consent, prescribers should consult the patient’s broader healthcare team about medications and treatment plans.
The tenth and final standard was that prescribers consistently monitor and review patients, adjusting treatment plans as required.
Read the minimum standards for prescribing here.
