ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the best practice principles of pharmacological assessment, medicine management and prescribing. It outlines the safe administration of medicines and the relevant legislation and codes which govern best practice. In modern health-care arena with the development of new and more sophisticated medication regimes, nursing medication management has become more complex, with increasing responsibility. The Misuse of Drugs Regulations classifies into schedules denoting the requirement for import, export, production, supply, possession, prescribing and record-keeping. There are strict prescribing guidelines concerning the initiation of an antidementia drug. The potential of non-medical prescribing in mental health is increasingly being recognized, with a significant increase in the number of nurses undertaking prescribing training. The chapter discusses the licensed pharmacological agents for the cognitive symptoms of dementia and some of the pharmacotherapies for non-cognitive symptoms. It explores how the assessment of pain may differ for a person living with dementia who may be experiencing cognitive impairment.
