Embracing technology will improve health care and minimise adverse drug events, according to ACT minister for health Katy Gallagher.
Viewing a demonstration of electronic prescribing and medication management, last week, the minister said the Territory Government was investing $90 million in its Health-e Future program to enable coordinated information sharing between health care professionals.
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“The National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission, in a report last year called for electronic prescribing and medication management capability to be prioritised and co-ordinated nationally to reduce medication incidents.
“Here in the ACT we are also investing in a $90 million e-health program recognising the impoartance of the latest technology in the delivery of health care and further supporting the computerisation of GPs,” she said.
Ms Gallagher said the use of electronic prescribing systems would help monitor medication use and provide information to shape future health policies.
She added 88 per cent of pharmacists in the ACT were using eRx Script Exchange, while 28 per cent of doctors had signed up to the electronic prescribing service.
“Electronic prescriptions have the potential to minimise adverse drug events by reducing dispensing errors and improving the safety of the patients’ medication management.
“Electronic prescribing also allows better tracking of whether prescriptions have been filled and will make for better national data and therefore more informed health policies,” she said.
The eRx Script Exchange system allows GPs and other health professionals to send prescriptions electronically to a secure script gateway for retrieval at a patient’s pharmacy anywhere in Australia.
