All Wales Shared Care Framework

This document aims to ensure consistency in shared care across Wales in terms of principles, application of developing and reviewing shared care arrangements, and in taking a patient-centred approach to shared care.

The principles of shared care are outlined, and a framework is provided for the seamless sharing of care between the patient, specialist services, and primary care in situations where it is appropriate, beneficial to the patient, and supported by them.

Originally published in 2021 as the ‘Shared care prescribing and monitoring guidance’ document, this update includes a set of shared care principles, criteria for medicines suitable for shared care, patient-centred considerations, clear details of roles and responsibilities for all involved, a decision support flow diagram, a patient information leaflet, and an associated Equality and Health Impact Assessment form.  

This framework applies to shared care agreements between specialist services (including secondary or tertiary care) and primary care, where responsibilities for prescribing and monitoring medicines are formally shared under a defined protocol.

(Published August 2025)

Equality Health and Impact Assessment form - All Wales Shared Care Framework

Additional resources:

• Appendix 1: Shared care protocol template 31KB (Word doc)
• Appendix 2: Template letter - Request for shared care agreement (specialist to primary care prescriber) 20KB (Word doc) 
• Appendix 3: Shared care decision flowchart 19KB (PDF) 
• Appendix 5: Template - shared care patient consent form 22KB (Word doc) 
• Appendix 6: Template letter - primary care response 25KB (Word doc) 
• Appendix 7: Template: shared care protocol audit 26KB (Word doc) 

Patient information leaflets:

These patient information leaflets provide important information for patients to consider for their shared care agreements.  The leaflets are presented in two formats (A and B), each with Welsh and English language versions. Format B is in an easy read format, and is available in versions designed to be used digitally or printable. 

• All Wales Shared Care Framework - patient information leaflet - Format A (English) 60KB (PDF)
• All Wales Shared Care Framework - patient information leaflet - Format A (Welsh) 71KB (PDF)
• All Wales Shared Care Framework - patient information leaflet - Format B  (English) DIGITAL 449KB (PDF)
• All Wales Shared Care Framework - patient information leaflet - Format B (Welsh) DIGITAL 508KB (PDF)
• All Wales Shared Care Framework - patient information leaflet - Format B (English) PRINT 4,488KB (PDF)
• All Wales Shared Care Framework - patient information leaflet - Format B (Welsh) PRINT 4,488KB (PDF)

(Patient information leaflets published August 2025)

Definition of Shared Care: 

(Published March 2006)