Oral Nutritional Supplements: To Prescribe or Not to Prescribe?

Published in NHD magazine, July 2017

By Naomi Johnson and Katherine Sykes

NHS England and NICE guidance state that Oral Nutritional Supplements (ONS) should be prescribed whenever there is a clinical need to do so. This article argues that the provision of ONS on prescription ensures that under the supervision of a healthcare professional, all patients, including the most vulnerable, are able to access the products that are most appropriate for their care, whenever they are needed.