The National Health Service (General Medical Services Contracts) Regulations 2004

Independent nurse prescribers and supplementary prescribers

65.—(1) Where—

(a)a contractor employs or engages a person who is an independent nurse prescriber or a supplementary prescriber whose functions will include prescribing;

(b)a party to the contract is an independent nurse prescriber or a supplementary prescriber whose functions will include prescribing; or

(c)the functions of a person who is an independent nurse prescriber or a supplementary prescriber whom the contractor already employs or has already engaged are extended to include prescribing,

it shall notify the Primary Care Trust in writing within the period of seven days beginning with the date on which the contractor employed or engaged the person, the party became a party to the contract (unless immediately before becoming such a party, he fell under paragraph (a)), or the person’s functions were extended, as the case may be.

(2) Where—

(a)the contractor ceases to employ or engage a person who is an independent nurse prescriber or a supplementary prescriber whose functions included prescribing in its practice;

(b)the party to the contract who is an independent nurse prescriber or a supplementary prescriber whose functions include prescribing, ceases to be a party to the contract;

(c)the functions of a person who is an independent nurse prescriber or a supplementary prescriber whom the contractor employs or engages in its practice are changed so that they no longer include prescribing in its practice; or

(d)the contractor becomes aware that a person who is an independent nurse prescriber or a supplementary prescriber whom it employs or engages has been removed or suspended from the relevant register,

it shall notify the Primary Care Trust in writing by the end of the second working day after the day when the event occurred.

(3) The contractor shall provide the following information when it notifies the Primary Care Trust in accordance with sub-paragraph (1)—

(a)the person’s full name;

(b)his professional qualifications;

(c)his identifying number which appears in the relevant register;

(d)the date on which his entry in the relevant register was annotated to the effect that he was qualified to order drugs, medicines and appliances for patients;

(e)the date on which—

(i)he was employed or engaged, if applicable,

(ii)he became a party to the contract, if applicable, or

(iii)one of his functions became to prescribe in its practice.

(4) The contractor shall provide the following information when it notifies the Primary Care Trust in accordance with sub-paragraph (2)—

(a)the person’s full name;

(b)his professional qualifications;

(c)his identifying number which appears in the relevant register;

(d)the date—

(i)he ceased to be employed or engaged in its practice,

(ii)he ceased to be a party to the contract,

(iii)his functions changed so as no longer to include prescribing, or

(iv)on which he was removed or suspended from the relevant register.