The role of nurse prescribers in memory services and their continuing professional development: A review of the literature

Abstract

Background Nurse prescribers (NPs) in memory services have a potentially important role in alleviating the burden of dementia on health care, but they require continuing professional development (CPD) specific to their scope of practice. Aims To inform development of CPD workshops for mental health NPs working in memory services, a review of the literature was undertaken regarding role and CPD issues of this professional group. Design and Methods Healthcare databases were searched using defined search terms alongside lateral searches. Study characteristics were extracted systematically, with results grouped thematically in the style of a narrative review. Reporting followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐Analyses, adapted for current methods (see Supporting Information File S1). Results and Discussion Nine articles specifically addressing nurse prescribing in memory services were found. Studies from broader areas were drawn upon. Considerable variation was found for how the role of memory service NPs might be defined, due in part to variation in characteristics of memory services. NPs, other clinical staff and patients have provided positive feedback to the introduction of the role in memory services and elsewhere. However, concerns around prescribing cautiousness of NPs were apparent. Little clinical or economic outcome data were found to compare opinions and experiences to, with none for NPs in memory services. Literature addressing CPD issues for NPs in memory services was nonexistent. Studies from surrounding areas suggest a problem with availability of CPD opportunities for nurse prescribers. Conclusion This review highlights the paucity of literature for this area of inquiry, particularly for clinical, economic and other patient outcome data. Relevance to Clinical Practice Variation in the little existing evidence suggests development of CPD opportunities should spend time understanding issues at the local level. The gap in the literature in this area may impact policy decisions in the UK and elsewhere.

The utilization of a nurse‐led clinic by older people with cognitive complaints: Do they follow our advice?

“…With the increasing number of nurse‐led clinics worldwide, several studies have been conducted to explore the role of nurses in memory services and related issues (Minstrell et al, 2014; Stirling et al, 2016). Although several strengths of nurse‐led clinics were reported, there is limited information about the adherence of clients to the nurses' advice after attending cognitive services (Emrich‐Mills et al, 2019). To address this issue and ensure that people with dementia can gain timely access to diagnostic and postdiagnostic care, it is necessary to understand the predictors of client adherence (Luck & Doucet, 2021).…”

A rapid review exploring nurse‐led memory clinics

“…While nurse prescribing has the potential to improve efficiencies (e.g. timey access to reliable diagnosis and treatment; cost‐effective care; Emrich‐Mills et al., 2019; McInally, 2015), our understanding of nurses comprehensively leading the care of individuals with dementia in a memory clinic, from diagnosis through to postdiagnostic care, is limited.…”

“…To date, no systematic review has been conducted to consolidate the current approaches and practices of nurse‐led memory clinics where the nurse autonomously leads both the diagnosis and postdiagnostic care for individuals with dementia. One systematic literature review did explore nurse prescribing in memory services (Emrich‐Mills et al., 2019); however, most of the articles reviewed were for supplementary prescribing after a diagnosis was made by a physician. While nurse prescribing has the potential to improve efficiencies (e.g.…”