Standards › Standard 27 › Policies
Policy · TEL-POL-002 · Version 1.0 · Approved by the ASF Expert Committee
Supports: 27.15
At a glance
- A medicine is prescribed remotely only where the clinician has enough information to do so safely (PHM-FRM-001).
- Allergies, interactions and current medicines are checked before the prescription is issued.
- Controlled medicines are not prescribed remotely to a patient never seen.
- Every remote prescription is recorded in the clinical record.
- Stop and get help straight away if: a controlled medicine is prescribed remotely to a patient never seen.
1. Purpose
To make sure medicines prescribed at a distance are prescribed safely and recorded (27.15).
2. Scope
| Applies to | Clinical and support staff in the hospital |
| Locations | All wards, clinics and departments of the facility |
| When | Whenever the activity described is carried out |
| Does not apply to | Activities covered by another document listed in section 15 |
3. Definitions
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Clinical lead | The doctor or nurse in charge of the area at the time |
4. Background
A prescription written without seeing the patient can miss an allergy or an interaction. A safe process for remote prescribing limits what can be prescribed without an examination.
5. Responsibilities
| Role | Responsibility | Competence |
|---|---|---|
| Clinical lead | Owns the remote prescribing rule | Clinician |
| Prescribing clinician | Checks and records each remote prescription | Clinician |
6. Materials and equipment
| Item | Requirement | Condition |
|---|---|---|
| Records and forms named in this document | Current version | Checked before use |
7. Safety
- Stop and call for help if a patient is at immediate risk. Do not delay urgent care to complete paperwork.
8. Before you start
- Confirm the forms and equipment named in this document are available and current.
9. Procedure
Step 1. Check sufficiency.
- Decide whether there is enough information to prescribe safely. If not, arrange an in-person review.
Key point: Decided.
Step 2. Check safety.
- Check allergies, interactions and current medicines, and record the result.
Key point: Checked.
Step 3. Record.
- Record the prescription in the clinical record, on PHM-FRM-001.
Key point: Recorded.
10. Decision points
- No decision points in this procedure.
11. Special situations
| Situation | Action |
|---|---|
| Out of hours | Follow the same steps. Use the on-call contact on the wall of the area. |
12. Escalation
- Any serious problem goes to the duty clinical lead at once and to the clinical director the same day.
13. Monitoring
| Measure | Target | Frequency | Owner | If not met |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Remote prescriptions recorded with safety checks | 100% | Monthly | Clinical lead | Escalate to medical director |
14. Records
| Record | Kept in | Retention |
|---|---|---|
| Record named in this document | Patient record or the area file | the period set by the facility’s records policy years |
15. Training
- Staff are trained in this document at induction and refreshed each year, with a recorded competency check.
16. Related documents
| ID | Title | Use |
|---|---|---|
| PHM-FRM-001 | Prescription record (existing, reused) | Record |
17. Evidence
| Reference | Note |
|---|---|
| E-009 | Based on the WHO Recommendations on digital interventions for health system strengthening (2019) and the WHO Ethics and governance of artificial intelligence for health (2021). |
| E-006 | ASF Policy Framework v1.2. Adapted. |
| E-009 | ASF Expert Committee consensus. |
18. Change history
| Version | Date | What changed | Approval |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.0 | the date of approval | First version | set Expert Committee approval |
E-learning for this document
References
- Accréditation Sans Frontières (2026). ASF Policy Framework v1.2. (E-006)
- Accréditation Sans Frontières (2026). ASF Expert Committee consensus on Standard 1. (E-009)