Exploring the applicability of the UK Prescribing Safety Assessment with early career pharmacists as preparation before formal prescribing training

INTRODUCTION: Evidence shows that non-medical prescribing is as effective as medical prescribing in a range of acute and chronic conditions and is well accepted by a diverse range of key stakeholders. Pharmacists in the UK are set to acquire prescribing skills at an earlier stage in their training, with prescribing integrated into the first five years of training and the ability to prescribe from the point of registration from August 2026. Therefore, reliable and reproducible methods of assessing their ability to prescribe safely need to be in place. The UK Prescribing Safety Assessment (PSA) could be a standard method to assess prescribing skills across professions. AIM: To examine the performance of post-registration Foundation pharmacists in the PSA and to explore their views on its suitability as a development tool before enrolling on an independent prescribing (IP) course. METHOD: Pharmacists in Scotland 12 months into the post-registration Foundation programme were invited to sit a 30-question, blueprint-aligned online PSA in September 2024. Mean scores and facility scores were determined. (Facility is a measurement of how easy a question is: higher facility index = question is considered easier; lower facility index = question is considered more difficult). An online evaluation questionnaire gathered feedback on content and appropriateness, analysed using thematic analysis. RESULTS: Seventy-one of 128 (55.5%) eligible pharmacists sat the PSA; mean total score was 72.5% (SD 10.2). Domain-level mean scores (facility) were: Prescription Review 13.51/16 (0.84); Providing Information 4.96/6 (0.83); Dose Calculations 6.85/8 (0.86); Adverse Drug Reactions 6.51/8 (0.81); Drug Monitoring 5.61/8 (0.70); Planning Management 5.01/8 (0.63); Data Interpretation 3.41/6 (0.57); Prescription Writing 26.62/40 (0.67). The questionnaire was completed by 16/71 (22.5%) PSA sitters: most agreed the assessment was appropriate for their stage and helpful preparation for an IP course; some community pharmacists considered hospital-based content less relevant. CONCLUSION: Formative participation in the UK PSA by post-registration Foundation pharmacists provided domain-level performance data and was regarded by respondents as useful preparation for an IP course. Findings suggest potential value in situating the PSA during the Foundation Training Year, with consideration of sector relevance and targeted support for domains such as prescription writing and data interpretation.