Overview
What is ePrescribing?
ePrescribing in Clinical is currently facilitated by eRx Script Exchange, an Australia-wide Internet-based gateway allowing prescriptions to be sent electronically and securely between practitioners and pharmacies. It has been developed to improve patient safety by ensuring that the information on a patient's prescription arrives exactly as intended.
Why are e-scripts important?
Electronic prescriptions reduce the chance of keying errors during dispensing, which enhances patient safety and strengthens confidence that they are receiving the right medication at the right time. Patients will have a better health care experience overall, as a result of improving coordination and management of care between practitioners and pharmacies.
How does it work?
You prescribe in Clinical as you normally would, printing a paper prescription, which now includes an eRx barcode and a QR code. At the same time, the prescription information is sent securely to eRx Script Exchange via MDExchange (to use ePrescribing your practice must be registered with MDExchange). Your patient can then visit a pharmacy of their choice to have their medication dispensed. The pharmacist will scan your patient's prescription barcode and this will retrieve their script information. Your patient's prescription can only be accessed when they present the paper script.
Is your patient's information secure?
All of your patient's personal and medication information is fully encrypted, making it completely private and secure. Only the patient's practitioner and pharmacist can see the patient's information, as they can now. eRx is not able to decrypt or see a patient's information.
Can your patient get repeats at any pharmacy?
Yes, your patient can visit a pharmacy of their choice for repeats. They simply present the paper prescription with the eRx barcode to the pharmacy, and their electronic prescription is retrieved from eRx, and dispensed. If the patient's chosen pharmacy does not yet participate in the eRx Script Exchange, it will still be able to dispense the patient's medication.
Will your patient be charged for this service?
No, eRx is a free service for patients.
What information is sent?
The electronic prescription contains the same information as current paper prescriptions.
Who sees the information?
Only the patient's practitioner and pharmacy can see the patient's information. Nobody else, including MedicalDirector, eRx, Government or any third party, can see the patient's information.
Will your patient's data be provided to anybody else?
No.
Can your patient choose not to have their prescriptions sent to eRx?
Yes. If they prefer not to have their prescription information sent to eRx Script Exchange, you can indicate this in Clinical.
