A BIG change in the pharmaceutical world will be arriving shortly, as the nation begins to shift towards paperless prescriptions.
Create a free account to read this article
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Historically, patients received a paper prescription, filled by a doctor and taken to a pharmacy where the medication would be dispensed.
Repeats would be noted and the patient would receive their physical prescription back, so they could return at a later date when they needed more medicine.
Now, electronic prescriptions are being introduced, which will mean serious changes for pharmacies, patients and doctors.
READ MORE:
Robin Salvestro from Soul Pattinson Chemist, in NSW's Riverina, says the new changes are here to stay.
"It's pretty exciting stuff," he said.
"The great thing for us is that paper is going, and that's going to save a lot of trees.
"The initial thing will be teething issues, but we're ready to go."
The major reason pharmacists are supporting the new change is the convenience factor for patients, and there are two proposed systems available for accessing electronic prescriptions.
The first is the 'token' model, which is best suited to patients suffering from an acute condition rather than a chronic illness, which might involve multiple medicines.
Under this model, a QR code will be sent via an app, SMS or email to the patient, who will then take it to a pharmacist to receive their medication.
Family members or agents can collect medicines on behalf of the patient, but they need to personally be sent the QR code, which can only be sent once.
"We do still have a lot of people that don't want to use the app," Mr Salvestro said.
"But unfortunately there's going to be no option."
The second model is called the Active Script List, which sees prescriptions held in a secure Prescription Delivery Service, then accessed by a patient after they have proved their identity at a pharmacy of their choice.
This model aims to overcome the issue of lost tokens and assist with medication management.
The changes will officially be implemented when all technical issues, patient impacts and workflow management considerations have been identified and corrected by the Pharmacy Guild of Australia.
