Teaching rational prescribing to general practice registrars: A guide for supervisors.

BACKGROUND

Pharmaceuticals play an important role in modern day healthcare, and prescribing is a very common activity in Australian general practice. However, there are significant harms associated with medicine use. Vocational training is a critical period in the development of clinical practice patterns for the future general practitioner (GP), including prescribing behaviour. The general practice supervisor, therefore, has a key role to play in educating registrars about rational prescribing.

OBJECTIVE

In this article, we discuss a range of practical strategies for general practice supervisors to use when teaching their registrars rational prescribing in the practice setting.

DISCUSSION

Teaching rational prescribing should take on a patient-centred focus and incorporate an approach to managing uncertainty. Role-modelling of quality prescribing and use of guidelines is a strong influence on registrar behaviour. Specific strategies include random case analysis, audit and feedback of prescribing practice, topic tutorials and use of specific prescribing resources.