Patient Group Directions (PGDs) provide a legal framework that allows some registered health professionals to supply and/or administer specified medicines to a pre-defined group of patients, without them having to see a prescriber (such as a doctor or nurse prescriber).
Supplying and/or administering medicines under PGDs should be reserved for situations in which this offers an advantage for patient care, without compromising patient safety.
PGDs should be put together by a multi-disciplinary group including a doctor, a pharmacist, and a representative of any professional group expected to supply the medicines under the PGD. It’s good practice to involve local drug and therapeutics committees, area prescribing committees, and similar advisory bodies.
The expiry date for a PGD needs to be decided on a case-by-case basis in the interest of patient safety. The expiry date should not be more than 3 years from the date the PGD was authorised.
You can do this if you are a qualified healthcare professional. These are:
According to the legal requirements, a PGD must include:
See the Human Medicines Regulations 2012 for the legal requirements for PGDs.