Active Ingredient Prescribing User Guide
This user guide supports prescribers to prescribe medicines by the active ingredient with best practice guidance for specification of brand.
This document was last updated by the Commission in December 2022. From 1 January 2023, the Australian Government Department of Health and Aged Care is managing the curation of Active ingredient prescribing resources. From this date, please direct all AIP enquiries to aiprescribing@health.gov.au
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The Active ingredient prescribing – User guide for Australian prescribers provides detailed information on active ingredient prescribing for prescribers, legislative requirements and best practice guidance for specification of brand. The user guide outlines the principles to determine when prescribers should consider brand name specification in addition to active ingredient name for a medicine, if clinically necessary, as well as medicines which are more safer and practical to prescribe by brand name only.