The National Health Commission, China's top health authority, will explore the possibility of granting nurses prescription powers, a policy that would bring convenience to patients and help retain nursing talent.

In a statement released on its website on Aug 20, the commission said it was responding to a proposal submitted by a deputy to the National People's Congress during the top legislature's annual meeting in March. The proposal called for formulating rules and regulations to give prescription authority to specialist nurses, allowing them to prescribe certain drugs and order diagnostic tests.

"The commission will fully research and analyze the necessity and significance of giving nurses prescribing powers," the commission said. "Based on extensive research and analysis, the commission will revise relevant regulations at appropriate times and improve related policies."

Prescription authority is currently restricted to registered physicians.

"There is no legal basis for giving nurses prescribing rights at present," the commission said. "Nurses are only allowed to provide guidance in diets, workout plans and general disease and health knowledge to patients."

However, calls for expanding prescription powers to nurses have been growing in recent years to give their careers more significance and to improve the effectiveness of medical services.

Yao Jianhong, a national political adviser and former Party chief of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, told CPPCC Daily, a newspaper affiliated with the nation's top political advisory body, that some developed countries allow nurses to write prescriptions, and some cities in China have launched trial programs.

In October, Shenzhen, in Guangdong province, put into effect a regulation that authorizes eligible nurses to order examinations, therapies and prescribe topical medications relevant to their area of expertise. According to the regulation, such prescriptions must be based on existing diagnoses issued by physicians, and eligible nurses should have a minimum of five years of work experience and must have attended a training program.

Hu Chunlian, head of the outpatient department at Yueyang People's Hospital in Yueyang, Hunan province, said that because specialist nurses cannot directly give prescriptions or order tests, patients have to book appointments with doctors and wait longer to receive medication.

Common cases involve patients who need certain drugs to treat wounds, as well as patients in need of stoma care or peripherally inserted central catheters, she told CN-healthcare, an online media outlet.

"Expanding prescription authority to nurses is bound to be a trend in the future, because such a policy will brighten the career prospects of highly educated nurses and help retain talent," she said.

According to the commission, the number of registered nurses nationwide has been increasing by an average of 8 percent a year over the past decade, with about 300,000 new graduates entering the workforce each year.

There are currently more than 5.6 million nurses working in China.

wangxiaoyu@chinadaily.com.cn