Hawke's Bay school nurse gets licence to prescribe

Karamu High School Public Health Nurse Fran Bayley is the first to gain the council's approval to prescribe about 80 medications . Photo Supplied

Helping ease GPs load and improving healthcare are benefits of Hawke's Bay's registered nurse prescribing programme, says the first participant to complete it.

Nursing Council of New Zealand last year endorsed Te Whatu Ora – Health New Zealand, Te Matau a Māui Hawke's Bay to run the Registered Nurse Prescribing in Community Health programme, which started in January.

Karamu High School public health nurse Fran Bayley is the first of 27 registered nurses enrolled in the programme to gain the council's approval to prescribe about 80 medications to treat infections, sexual health and conditions such as eczema, head lice and rheumatic fever.

Bayley, 43, says the programme broadens registered nurses' scope, and helps break down barriers between patients and primary healthcare.

"It's helping take the load off GPs and improving equity and access for patients," said Bayley, who works at Flaxmere Community Health clinic during school holidays and also helps deliver school-based immunisation programmes.

"Previously, if a patient had a urinary tract infection, nurses could take a urine sample and diagnose it but we wouldn't be able to treat them, instead having to send the patient to a GP," she said.

"Now we can give the treatment as well so it just gives nurses more autonomy."

Counties Manukau piloted the programme in 2017.

Registered nurses must have at least three years' experience in their role to enrol.

Bayley says participants have plenty of support throughout the programme and beyond.

"We each had a dedicated clinical supervisor to reflect and analyse cases with to help give us that confidence that we are on the right track," she says.

"We can also draw from a range of online resources such as Clinical Pathways, which gives step-by-step guidance about treatment medications."

Participants must complete 30 hours of online training modules, in-class training, 12 hours of face-to-face supervision, a clinical log that looks at what they could do as a registered nurse versus as a prescriber, data gathering and analysis of patient interactions, a portfolio including two case studies and 10 extra Nursing Council competencies.

Programme lead Helen August says the 14 public health nurse and 13 practice nurses enrolled in the programme have until October to submit their portfolios.

The participants work for a variety of employers including Te Whatu Ora Hawke's Bay, general practices or other community healthcare organisations.

"The Nursing Council endorsed Te Whatu Ora - Hawke's Bay to act as the umbrella organisation providing clinical governance for the programme, so we manage coordination, education, assessment and credentialing," said August, Te Whatu Ora - Hawke's Bay nurse practitioner.

"The programme was set up to improve the health of Hawke's Bay's tamariki and whānau. It also helps our nurses work to the top of their scope, so therefore our community are getting the best possible service from our nurses, who know that population."