app/presc mod 1 - Foundations of Scheduled Medicines Prescribing

This set of vocabulary flashcards covers the foundational legal, ethical, and pharmacological concepts for scheduled medicines prescribing in podiatry.

Prescribing

A complex task requiring knowledge, skills, and professional attitudes that may initiate, continue, change, or cease a medicine for a unique person at a specific point in time.

Schedule 4 (S4)

A scheduling category that usually identifies a substance as a prescription-only medicine.

Schedule 8 (S8)

A scheduling category for medicines that require higher control requirements due to their potential for misuse.

Registered Podiatrist (Medicine Authority)

Authorised under s. 13.1.c to possess and use ONLY APPROVED Schedule 4 medicines (e.g., specific local anaesthetics) required in podiatric treatment without additional qualifications.

Endorsed Podiatrist

A practitioner with additional qualifications in scheduled medicines, authorised under s. 94.1 of the Health Practitioner Regulation National Law (NSW) 86a 2009 (1) and s. 13.1.c to prescribe approved S2, S3, S4, and S8 medicines.

Pathway A

A route to endorsement involving an approved or substantially equivalent qualification, such as one embedded in a University podiatry degree.

Pathway B

A route to endorsement involving supervised practice for qualified podiatrists with structured evidence of competence.

National Podiatry Scheduled Medicines List

A scope and restriction document that defines medicines relevant to endorsed podiatric prescribing, organised by therapeutic class and medicine group.

Quality Use of Medicines (QUM)

A principle ensuring that medicines are selected and used wisely, safely, and effectively.

Beneficence

An ethical principle of prescribing only for meaningful patient benefit.

Non-maleficence

An ethical principle focused on avoiding preventable medicine-related harm.

Autonomy

An ethical principle supporting informed and voluntary patient decisions.

Justice

An ethical principle considering fair access, affordability, and non-discriminatory care.

National Prescribing Competencies Framework

A framework revised and released as a 3rd edition in 2025 by Ahpra, outlining 7 competency areas for prescribing safely and professionally.

Pharmacology

The study of drugs and how they interact with the body, including pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic, or pharmacogenomic interactions.

Pharmacokinetics

A branch of pharmacology describing what the body does to the drug, primarily involving the ADME process.

ADME

The four stages of pharmacokinetics: Absorption, Distribution, Metabolism, and Elimination.

Pharmacodynamics

A branch of pharmacology describing what the medicine does to the body, arising from the medicine's mechanism of action.

Agonists

Medicines that act through receptors to activate them.

Antagonists

Medicines that act through receptors to block receptor effects.

Bioavailability

The proportion of a dose reaching systemic circulation intact, which can be reduced by poor absorption or high first-pass metabolism.

First-pass metabolism

The chemical transformation of a drug that occurs during its initial passage through the liver after gastrointestinal absorption.

Half-life

The time required for the blood concentration of a drug to fall by half, which influences the time to steady state and dosing frequency.

Free drug

The unbound portion of a medicine that is the only part capable of exerting a pharmacological effect.

CYP enzymes

Liver enzymes responsible for many clinically significant interactions; their inhibition can increase medicine exposure and adverse-effect risk.

Renal excretion

The process of eliminating unbound drugs or metabolites through the kidneys via glomerular filtration and tubular secretion.