Medicines Information Services in the NHS support the safe, effective and efficient use of medicines by the provision of evidence‐based information and advice.
The service has two broad functions:
- to support medicines optimisation of individual patients
- to support medicines management within NHS organisations
In Scotland, medicines information services are delivered by seven medicines information (MI) centres to 11 of the 14 Territorial Health Boards. Service Level Agreements (SLAs) are in place with some centres to provide an MI service to neighbouring Health Boards.
The Association of Scottish MI Practitioners (ASMIP) executive group comprises of the Lead / Principal Pharmacists of the MI centres. It is a forum through which a range of collaborative and co‐operative strategic and operational work is undertaken. The ASMIP executive group feeds into the national UKMi executive network.
The ASMIP executive group works to facilitate the delivery of the primary objectives of the UKMi executive group in addition to national objectives for NHS Scotland as outlined below:
- To advise healthcare professionals on various aspects of medicines to support patient centred care.
- To improve patient safety and reduce risks associated with medicines and their use in practice.
- To support local and national organisations and networks in their planning and policy work related to medicines. This may include support for local decision making and formulary development.
- To support patients using their medicines which may include the provision of safe and effective patient medicine helplines and other patient facing material.
- To lead the maintenance and development of the ASMIP infrastructure and professional standards. This includes developing key medicines information skills in the MI and broader workforce. Also included is support for quality assurance activities and resource management locally and nationally.
- To support pharmacy/MI staff professional development through the relevant frameworks including the advanced practice framework research
Accountability
The services are commissioned and funded by individual NHS Boards. Accountability may be built into specific work programmes or partnership agreements. ASMIP is not a legal entity in its own right. Each member of ASMIP is accountable to their individual employer.
Key relationships
- UKMi executive / UKMi network
- Scottish Directors of Pharmacy
- National Acute Pharmacy Services Group
- Medicines Information Practitioners
- Key professional service user e.g. pharmacists/pharmacy technicians, doctors, nurses
- Specialist Pharmacy Interest Groups
- Health Improvement Scotland
- Scottish Medicines Consortium
- Scottish Government – Therapeutics Branch
- Yellow Card Centre Scotland
- National Services Scotland – National Procurement
- Knowledge Services, NHS Scotland
- NHS Education Scotland (NES)
- Scottish Schools of Pharmacy
Structure
ASMIP is a representative group of Medicines Information Practitioners from the following centres:
NHS Lothian
NHS GGC
NHS Grampian
NHS Tayside
NHS Ayrshire & Arran
NHS Lanarkshire
NHS Highland
Meetings
ASMIP executive group meets regularly approximately 4 times a year. Two meetings per year (one day events) are held in Glasgow, Perth or Edinburgh on a rota basis. Two video conferences (MS Teams) are held at approximately 6 monthly intervals in between the face-to-face meetings. Ad- hoc meetings may be arranged as the need arises.
Attendees comprise the Leads / Principals of the Medicines Information centres or their nominated deputies. A representative from each centre will normally be expected to attend each meeting.
A quorum of two‐thirds of members/deputies is required for decision making.
Officers
The Chairperson and Vice chair shall be elected for a period of two years. The expectation is that the Vice chair will go on to become chair. Secretarial duties will be shared among the group with admin support where possible.
Election of officers will be by nominations from ASMIP executive members followed, if more than one nomination is received, by a simple majority vote of attending members at a convenient meeting. A quorum for this vote will be five of the 7 full members.
Annual declarations of interest will be collected and retained by NHS Lothian MI centre. Members who have any personal interests in any matters under discussion should declare them at the beginning of the meeting. The chair will determine whether the member should withdraw from the discussion and/or any decision making concerning that matter.
These terms of reference shall be reviewed every 2 years or more frequently if required.
Produced & checked by: ASMIP executive members, September 2023
Review date: September 2025