Pharmacists have three scopes of practice

Scopes of practice describe the health services that a pharmacist can provide. The pharmacy profession in New Zealand has three scopes of practice:

• intern pharmacist
• pharmacist
• pharmacist prescriber.

These scopes describe the health services that an intern pharmacist, pharmacist, or pharmacist prescriber have the training and competence to provide. To practise within these scopes the practitioner must meet the requirements for registration and issue of an annual practising certificate.

Intern Pharmacist Scope of Practice

The intern pharmacist, practising under the supervision of a practising registered pharmacist, acts as a medicines manager, providing patient-centred medication therapy management, health improvement and disease prevention services in a collaborative environment.

Intern pharmacists ensure safe and quality use of medicines and optimise health outcomes by contributing to patient assessment and to the selection, prescribing, monitoring and evaluation of medicine therapy.

The practice of pharmacy may include:

• the custody, preparation and dispensing of medicines and pharmaceutical products
• the selection and provision of non-prescription medicine therapies and therapeutic aids
• health promotion, including health screening
• the potential for administration of medicines
• researching and evaluating information and providing evidence-based advice and recommendations on medicines and medicine-related health issues.

Pharmacist Scope of Practice

The practice of pharmacy is necessarily broad and is wider than pharmacists working directly with patients, given that such roles influence clinical practice and public safety.

In a clinical role, the pharmacist acts as a medicines manager, providing patient-centred medication therapy management, health improvement and disease prevention services, usually in a collaborative environment.

Pharmacists ensure safe and quality use of medicines and optimise health outcomes by contributing to patient assessment and to the selection, prescribing, monitoring and evaluation of medicine therapy.

The practice of pharmacy may include, but is not limited to:

• the custody, preparation and dispensing of medicines and pharmaceutical products
• the selection and provision of non-prescription medicine therapies and therapeutic aids
• health promotion, including health screening
• administration of medicines, including injectable medicines
• researching and evaluating information and providing evidence-based advice and recommendations on medicines and medicine-related health issues
• teaching and advising
• policy development
• management
• manufacturing.

Pharmacist Prescriber Scope of Practice

Pharmacist prescribers have specialised clinical, pharmacological and pharmaceutical knowledge, skills and understanding relevant to their area of prescribing practice. This allows them to provide individualised medicines management services, including the prescribing of medicines to patients across a range of healthcare settings and models.

Pharmacist prescribers work in a collaborative health team environment with other healthcare professionals and are not the primary diagnostician. They can write a prescription for a patient in their care to initiate or modify therapy (including discontinuation or maintenance of therapy originally initiated by another prescriber). They can also provide a wide range of assessment and treatment interventions which includes, but is not limited to:

• ordering and interpreting investigation (including laboratory and related tests)
• assessing and monitoring a patient’s response to therapy
• providing education and advice to a patient on their medicine therapy.

Pharmacist prescribers must prescribe within the limits of their professional expertise and competence (both clinical and cultural) and ethical codes of practice. They are responsible and accountable for the care they provide.

Read more about pharmacist prescribers