Man. nurses to write prescriptions

The Manitoba government is working with registered nurses on a plan that would allow them to write prescriptions.

Sandi Mowat, president of the Manitoba Nurses Union, said registered nurses already have extensive training in pharmacology so it's not a great leap to writing prescriptions.

"We understand what all the interactions could be," she said. "We understand what all the side-effects could be. So we've taken [training on] all that kind of information already."

'We understand what all the interactions could be. We understand what all the side-effects could be.' — Sandi Mowat, Manitoba Nurses Union

Giving more authority to RNs will take the pressure off the health system, Mowat said.

"I'm not talking about complex stuff. I'm talking straightforward things that are seen regularly that they could prescribe [medications for]."

She cited antibiotics and birth control as examples.

The College of Registered Nurses of Manitoba, the regulatory body, has toured countries where RNs write prescriptions and is now developing guidelines and additional training for the drugs that nurses in this province should be allowed to prescribe.

The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Manitoba says the list of drugs should be limited.

And one Winnipeg doctor says the extra help from nurses isn't even needed, because it's not the writing of prescriptions that takes up doctors' time — it's all the other paperwork, such as writing sick notes.

"A huge portion of our day is dealing with needless administrative work," Darcy Johnson said.