Released 16 June 2023
Request:
Self-administration of medication policies
1. Does your hospital have a self-administration of medication policy? Y/N if yes:
a. Does it enable all people with Parkinson’s admitted to the hospital to be assessed to administer their own medication should they wish to do so?
b. Does your hospital have the necessary resources (e.g. lockable cupboards, staff training) to enact the self-administration of medication policy?
c. How many inpatient wards/departments is the self-administration of medication policy operational in out of the total number of inpatient wards/departments?
Training
2. Do you require inpatient hospital ward clinical staff who prescribe or administer medicine to complete training on medication management in Parkinson’s? Y/N If yes:
a. Is this training mandatory for staff who prescribe or administer medicine ?
b. Please specify the name of this training and course provider?
c. What percentage of staff who prescribe or administer medicine have completed this training?
d. Which types of clinician are required to complete this training?
e. How often do you require staff who prescribe or administer medicine to repeat this training?
3. Do you require inpatient hospital ward clinical staff to complete training on time critical or time sensitive medications (including Parkinson’s medication)? Y/N, if yes:
a. Is this training mandatory for staff who prescribe or administer medicine?
b. Please specify the name of this training and course provider?
c. What percentage of staff who prescribe or administer medicine have completed this training?
d. Which types of clinician are required to complete this training?
e. How often do you require staff who prescribe or administer medicine to repeat this training?
E-prescribing
4. Does your hospital have e-prescribing? Y/N
a. Does it have the functionality to record when medication was administered in 30 minute intervals over a 24 hour period?
b. Does it have the functionality to alert hospital ward staff when a patient’s medication is due to be administered?
c. Does it have the functionality to alert hospital ward staff when a patient’s medication is late in being administered?
d. Does your hospital have an electronic alert system to identify patients requiring time critical medication? If yes, please list the health conditions included as requiring time critical medication?
e) Does your hospital use an e-prescribing system to regularly run reports of delayed medication doses and ‘drugs not available’ for Parkinson’s medication?
Other
5. Are Parkinson’s medications available to clinical staff 24 hours a day, seven days a week? (e.g. this medication is stocked in an emergency medicines cabinet)
6. Do you have a system in place to ensure people with Parkinson’s get their medication on time while waiting to be seen in the Accident and Emergency department?
Information disclosed:
Self-administration of medication policies
1. Yes, a trust wide self-administration policy has recently been approved by our Medicines Governance Committee following a pilot scheme.
1a. Yes
1b. No, whilst all new patient’s own medicines cupboards that are purchased will be suitable for self-administration, there are some remaining in the Trust that are not suitable. Resources have not yet been allocated to cover the costs of the required training to roll this new policy out Trust-wide.
1c. 2
Training
2. All staff who prescribe or administer medication are required to undertake mandatory training but this is not specific to Parkinson’s.
2a-e. Not applicable as training not Parkinson’s specific.
3. Yes
3a. Yes. This training is part of newly qualified nurses medicine management competence assessment on their induction to their areas in their supernumerary period. Electronic Prescribing and Medicines Administration (EPMA) training is mandatory for all prescribing staff and this covers timely administration of medications. New nurses employed by the Trust have to undergo EPMA training and will be assessed by their relevant areas. Doctors have tuition within their medical training whilst at Medical School and on joining the Trust they attend an induction which includes Pharmacy within the programme. Doctors also go through EPMA on line, which shows how to prescribe. All regular medicines on EPMA have time constraints around administration.
3b. For nursing staff and prescribers this is taught under post registration module “Independent prescribing” within a local university.
3c. All staff who prescribe medications have to have completed the necessary training before they are able to prescribe.
3d. All clinicians are required to complete this training.
3e. Qualified nurses are expected to keep up to date with changes in prescribing and administration where relevant, but there is no official repeat training.
E-prescribing
4. Yes
4a. Yes
4c. Yes, the system provides a list of all medications due to be given over the next two hours.
4d. No
4e. Yes
Other
5. Yes
6. Yes, the Trust has a policy and the issue is discussed regularly in induction and training sessions for A&E staff.