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4 April 2012
The NPC and the NHS Information Centre have produced a set of online learning resources relating to the measurement and analysis of prescribing in primary care in England. These will be useful for everyone who needs to understand prescribing information, including GPs, non-medical prescribers, finance staff and commissioners. Prescribing advisers and medicines management teams will find these resources particularly useful.
What are the resources about?
These online learning materials describe the tools and resources available to measure and monitor prescribing cost and volume relative to different populations. Although they deal with primary care prescribing in England, many of the principles will be applicable to other contexts. After working through them, users will be able to:
- explain how measures of prescribing cost and volume and patient population are derived and calculated and describe their strengths and limitations
- explain which measure or measures are appropriate to support, review or answer questions relating to local prescribing medicine use
- interpret and evaluate prescribing information through a better understanding of prescribing information
- effectively develop or use prescribing indicators and comparators relating to local situations
- describe the national prescribing indicators and comparators which are available, know where to find them and evaluate their usefulness and limitations
What do the resources consist of?
There is a set of Power Point slides with audio commentary, split into six parts of about 10 to 20 minutes each. After listening to the recordings, users can check their understanding by attempting a short quiz. They will receive a score at the end, which they can print out and keep for their CPD records. There is also a glossary of prescribing terms for easy reference, and links to other useful resources and websites.
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