Challenges to Nurse Prescription in Iran: A Narrative Analysis

Nurse prescription is a relatively new and developing subject, with many critics and advocates worldwide. However, it is expanding rapidly and is being implemented in many countries. In Iran, nurses are not allowed to prescribe. No significant action has been taken in this regard. In Iran, nurse prescribing requires preparing the ground and providing the necessary conditions. The current study aimed to examine nurse prescribing worldwide and its possible challenges in Iran.This study is a narrative review of the English and Persian articles published in 2022 on nurse prescription in Iran and worldwide. We collected data by searching the international databases of PubMed, Science Direct, and Scopus, and the local databases of SID, Magiran, and Iran Medex for the keywords “nurse prescribing”, “nurse prescription”, “prescribing factors”, “prescribing effect”, “prescribing facilitation”, “prescribing barriers”, “prescribing benefits”, “prescriptions”, “medication and nursing”, “independent nurse prescribing”, “supplementary nurse prescribing”, “independent prescribing”, “nurse prescriber”, “prescribing”, and the possible combinations. We retrieved all related articles published between 2010 and the end of 2022.A total of 32 case studies were reviewed in this study. The results showed that nurse prescribing occurs globally in one of three forms: independent, supplementary, and patient group protocols. In Iran, nurse prescribing is prohibited, necessitating social support and assistance in policy-making, planning, and nursing education.Due to the unprepared environment in Iran, it is vital to provide assistance for prescribing. Numerous factors play a role in implementing nurse prescribing in Iran, so it is necessary to use the successful experience of countries that have been pioneers in this domain. It is suggested that health officials and those engaged take steps to teach prescribing nurses at the postgraduate and doctoral levels, or create a new discipline of nurse prescription.