Readiness of nurses and primary care facilities for prescription writing and its impact on healthcare quality

Introduction
The aim of this study was to analyse the opinions of nurses, doctors and patients on the readiness of nurses and primary care facilities to write prescriptions and prescribe medicines and its correlation with the quality of healthcare services.

Material and methods
The study was conducted between May and September 2021 among 1,077 people including: 188 nurses, 266 doctors and 623 patients in 19 primary care facilities (3 public and 16 non-public) out of 23 facilities located in Kielce. Two facilities (1 public and 1 non-public) from each of the 13 districts of the Świętokrzyskie Province were also drawn to participate in the study. The research tools were three original survey questionnaires.

Results
Patients believe that nurses are prepared to prescribe medicines independently (412; 66.13%). Only one in five nurses (41; 21.81%) and one in three doctors (94; 35.34%) viewed their competencies as sufficient. On the basis of the three estimated logistic regression models, each group of respondents (patients, doctors and nurses) identified determinants which constitute, to varying degrees, factors influencing the quality of healthcare provided. The differences in perception depend on expectations arising from the treatment process and the operation of medical facilities.

Conclusions
Patients rated nurses’ readiness to write prescriptions and prescribe medicines higher than nurses and doctors. Patients believe that nurses prescribing medications will improve the quality of healthcare services, in particular that patients will receive accurate dosage information and have quicker access to medicines. However, such an arrangement will not result in shorter waiting times for appointments with primary care physicians.