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Pharmacist prescribers could work alongside prescribing nurses to further antimicrobial stewardship, a review has concluded.
Publishing the results of the scoping review in Research in Social and Administrative Pharmacy on 8 August 2026, its authors looked at the antimicrobial stewardship (AMS) knowledge, competencies and prescribing behaviours in a range of non-medical prescribers (NMPs) across five countries, including the UK. The review included 20 papers, which covered 19 studies.
The authors noted that the UK “represents one of the most expansive models of NMP authority”, adding that, in England, NMPs “contribute approximately 8–10% of community antibiotic prescriptions”.
Overall, they found that interventions led by pharmacist prescribers reduced inappropriate antimicrobial prescribing.
“[Pharmacists] typically adhered closely to AMS guidance, favouring narrow-spectrum antibiotics,” the authors highlighted.
The authors also revealed that in community pharmacy and secondary care, pharmacists demonstrated “high guideline concordance, particularly for uncomplicated urinary tract infections”.
Nurse prescribers showed more variability in the type of antimicrobial prescribed, “balancing patient needs, clinical judgement and local epidemiology”, the authors said.
In addition, they emphasised that both pharmacists and nurses recognised the importance of patient education.
“Interprofessional learning, especially between nurse and pharmacist prescribers, may further support collaborative practice and consistent application of AMS principles,” the authors concluded.
In their recommendations, they suggested that prescribing capability of the two professions could be strengthened through “ongoing professional development, structured mentorship, effective translation of existing competency frameworks into practice, and interprofessional learning between nurse and pharmacist prescribers”.
The findings were published as the first cohort of new pharmacists become independent prescribers at the point of registration.
The Royal College of Pharmacy’s policy on AMS says that stewardship can be strengthened through pharmacist leadership in the development of all national and local action plans for AMS, as well as effective collaboration across the multidisciplinary team in the implementation of AMS plans.
Commenting on the review, Tase Oputu, president of the Royal College of Pharmacy, said: “Pharmacists bring specialist medicines expertise to AMS, from supporting appropriate prescribing and helping patients understand their treatment, to reviewing medicines and making sure treatment remains appropriate.
“AMS is a shared responsibility across healthcare, and there is value in professions understanding the different roles and expertise that each brings. Pharmacists, nurses and other prescribers all have an important part to play in ensuring antimicrobials are used safely and appropriately, and sharing knowledge and experience across professions can help support that.”
