Drug Topics - April 14, 2008 - (Page HSE2)

2 HSE DRUG TOPICS APRIL 14, 2008 www.drugtopics.com > > > Technology Some e-prescribing standards are ready to go, others are not Christine Blank P harmacists and physicians who used e-prescrib- practices,” said Woolley, one of the contractors who ing systems in pilot projects under the Medi- evaluated the pilot projects. care Modernization Act (MMA) said it made Still, some pharmacists and physicians were reluctheir jobs easier, according to new results presented at tant to move away from paper-based systems and had the recent Healthcare Information and Management trouble implementing e-prescribing in their day-toSystems Society (HIMSS) conference day business practices. in Orlando, Fla. “Adoption challenges are not a reAt the same time, they are still expesult of pharmacists or physicians beriencing challenges with the business ing technology-phobic. In fact, they workflow aspects—more than techuse technology in their everyday work nology issues—associated with impleprocesses,” Woolley told Drug Topmenting e-prescribing, according to P. ics. “However, when it impacts their Jon White, M.D., Health IT director routine, their workflow, and the way for the Agency for Healthcare Research they deliver care to their patients, it is a & Quality, and Rochelle Woolley, prinmore difficult change,” she added. Rochelle Woolley says ecipal of Woolley & Associates. In addition, the industry still needs prescribing will take time White and Woolley shared results to implement because to address technical problems that from five pilot sites in a variety of clini- it changes practitioners’ came up in the pilot projects such as: workflow. cal settings that tested e-prescribing pharmacies not always reliably receivthroughout 2006. The pilot projects were admin- ing transmissions, not finding patients in the systems, istered by AHRQ and the Centers for Medicare & and the systems taking too much time, according to Medicaid Services. White. “There is the continued need to address the The five pilots were spearheaded by the New Jersey reluctance to move away from paper-based prescribe-Prescribing Action Coalition; Brigham & Women’s ing and technical problems with the hardware and Hospital in Massachusetts; Achieve Healthcare Tech- software,” he said. nologies in Minneapolis, Minn.; Ohio KePRO (Keystone Peer Review Organization); and SureScripts, Long-term care settings which conducted a five-state pilot involving pharma- In long-term care settings, doctors and pharmacists cies and key software vendors. found that their workflow was slowed down by eprescribing. “However, everyone involved was still Surveying pharmacists and physicians enthusiastic about e-prescribing,” White said. In a follow-up survey after the year-long testing of After evaluating the observations of pharmacists various e-prescribing technologies, the physicians and physicians, the pilot project evaluation team recand pharmacists generally supported e-prescribing. ommended three of the initial standards to be ready Fifty-eight percent of the pharmacists and physicians for implementation under Part D of the MMA. At the agreed, and 24% “strongly agreed,” that e-prescribing same time, they said that three of the issues should is easy to use. Twenty-six percent agreed that e-pre- undergo additional research and testing. scribing made work easier for their staff, and 25% Standards on medication history, formulary and strongly agreed with that statement. benefits, and prescription fill status should be impleIn addition, 38% agreed that e-prescribing im- mented, while electronic prior authorization (PA), the proves the quality of care they can deliver and 24% structured and codified SIG, and RxNorm were not strongly agreed to that statement. recommended for adoption at this time because more “Anecdotally, we hear from physicians that, once work needed to be done. RxNorm, a standardized they fit e-prescribing into their workflow and it be- nomenclature for clinical drugs, is produced by the comes a habit, e-prescribing can improve communica- National Library of Medicine. tions among various staff as well as patients in their THE AUTHOR is a writer based in Orlando, Fla. http://www.drugtopics.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Drug Topics - April 14, 2008

Drug Topics - March 14, 2008 Contents Latebreakers Letters: Students Need Grounding in Chemistry Pharmacy Directors Wary of Heparin Shortages Some E-prescribing Standards are Ready to Go, Others are Not News Briefs Nanotechnology: Big Stakes in a Small World Pay for Performance is Coming to Pharmacy Patient Safety Organizations Still Very Much in Planning Stage Reconciling Medications in Specialty Patients Poses More Challenges Pharmacy Outsourcing Still Much in Use by Hospitals Studied Extensively, New Drug-Eluting Stent Said to be Very Safe Prevention is Key in Treating C. Difficile Infections E-prescribing Grows in Massachusetts, but Other States Lag Behind Active Metabolite Gives New Life to Antidepressant NSAIDS not Recommended for Long-term Use in Osteoarthritis This Time R.Ph.s and States Are Ready for Tamper-Resistant Rx Pads Cardinal Caught Between DEA and Pharmacies over Diversion Control Medicating Kids: Still More Questions than Answers Schnucks Pharmacy: Drug Topics' Chain of the Year Panel Will Ask for a System for R.Ph. Practice Across State Lines FDA Safety Page: How to use Fentora Safely The Shining OTC/HBC Stars of 2007 Take a Look at These OTCs for Eye Health Technology Update: Google Offers a Sneak Peak at its Electronic Records Initiative Recent Advancements in HIV/AIDS Treatment New Products Advertisers Index Classified Viewpoint: Are State Boards of Pharmacy Abusing Their Power?

Drug Topics - April 14, 2008

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