Independent and effective care – district nurses’ experiences of prescribing drugs: A systematic qualitative literature review

Abstract

Numerous countries in the world have chosen to allow district nurses to prescribe drugs to streamline the primary care process. This qualitative, systematic literature study aimed to examine district nurses’ experience of prescribing within primary care. The search followed the PRISMA-P search strategy, and the quality assessment of the nine articles was completed using the review template for assessing studies with qualitative methodology, using GRADE CERQual. The databases CINAHL, Pubmed, PsycINFO, and Scopus were used. The result shows that district nurses experience prescribing as crucial for being able to meet patient needs through holistic and person-centered care. Being able to sufficiently and efficiently meet patient needs contributed to increased job satisfaction and professional pride in district nurses. However, district nurses need more collegial support and training in prescribing. The additional burden that the ability to prescribe poses needs to be addressed to prevent limitations in the prescription rights of district nurses. Through an extended prescription right, district nurses can contribute to a more efficient care system that can meet future demand for healthcare services in primary care.