Information technology is being used increasingly to support best practice in healthcare, and to enable the development of new services and new ways of working. Many healthcare professions have already begun to adopt new systems and technologies.
Professional practice for pharmacists will be profoundly affected in future by the use of IT and now is the time for practising pharmacists to evaluate the technologies that are being introduced to support the profession, to contribute to the design of new systems and to consider how IT can support future professional objectives.
As the professional body for pharmacy, the Royal Pharmaceutical Society is committed to supporting the profession in adopting and engaging with new technologies to support pharmacy practice.
The three main areas that will have an immediate impact on future pharmacy practice are electronic transfer of prescriptions, hospital e-prescribing and information governance. For more information about these and other pharmacy IT issues, click on the links below:
The electronic transfer of prescriptions between prescribers and community pharmacists in primary care will form the foundation for pharmaceutical care in the community. When fully implemented, it has the potential to make the dispensing process safer and more efficient, and will enable community pharmacists to engage more fully in providing new clinically-oriented services.
The electronic transfer of prescriptions will be enabled by the Connecting for Health Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) in England, the e-Pharmacy Electronic Acute Medication Service (EAMS) in Scotland and, in due course, the Informing Healthcare 2DRx system in Wales.
For more information for each country, click on the links below:
The hospital e-prescribing programme aims to facilitate the delivery of functionality to support the prescribing, supply and administration of medicines in hospitals and other secondary care settings. Some hospitals in the UK are already using proprietary electronic prescribing systems.
Research has highlighted the potential of electronic prescribing systems to reduce the risk of medication-related errors in hospital settings. Electronic prescribing also has the potential to make the medicines management process in hospitals more efficient, to improve audit trails and the capture of clinical data and to enhance communications between hospital staff.
For more information, click here
The high profile data losses by government departments in 2007 increased the information governance priority within the NHS. The NHS Operating Framework 2009/10 introduced a requirement that by the end of 2009/10, all NHS providers, including community pharmacies must be able to provide annual IG assurances to their commissioners regarding the management of personal information within the provider organisation. These assurances are to be evidenced by providers (each pharmacy premises) achieving, or having an agreed action plan in place to achieve in a reasonable timeframe, a minimum of Level 2 performance against key NHS information governance requirements published through the NHS Information Governance Toolkit, an online assessment.
PSNC and the RPSGB have been working jointly with the Department of Health and NHS Connecting for Health to identify the set of toolkit requirements that community pharmacists will be expected to comply with, and to develop guidance and tools for pharmacists so that the Information governance requirements can be efficiently and effectively implemented. A consultative version of the NHS Pharmacy IG Requirements is expected to be published on the CFH website in late October with the requirements expected to be finalised in January 2010.
Meeting the requirements will inevitably have resource implications for all pharmacies. A workbook and template resources to support pharmacies in meeting the requirements is being developed, covering issues like confidentiality, data transfer methods, staff training and incident reporting.
For more information, click here
A Pharmacy IG workbook and training booklet have been developed jointly by the Society and the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee (PSNC). The workbook provides guidance and support for pharmacies in meeting the NHS IG requirements, completing the online IG Toolkit, and preparing for PCT monitoring visits. The training booklet provides basic training on IG for all pharmacy staff.
To view the IG workbook, click here
To view the IG training booklet, click here
The dispensing process is at the heart of community pharmacy practice. An efficient and safe dispensing process is an important prerequisite for a community pharmacy to provide new, clinically-focused services – firstly, because it will support those services and secondly, because it will release pharmacist time to provide those services.
The Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) Release 2 presents an opportunity for pharmacists in that it has the potential to streamline the dispensary workflow and thereby improve dispensing capacity, and the accuracy and safety of the dispensing process. In order for dispensing staff to benefit fully from EPS Release 2, it is important to consider how local processes and Standard Operating Procedures can be modified to ensure the new service is used to its maximum potential.
For more information, click here
There are many other areas of pharmacy where, in future, IT will be able to support best practice. These might include the use of pharmacy robots, web-based on other specialist applications for supporting new clinical services, and even telemedicine systems for patient monitoring and support in their own homes.
In consultation with other pharmacy organisations, the Society has developed a policy for pharmacy IT which sets out the professional body’s commitment to the use of information technology by pharmacists to enable the provision of high-quality patient care. The policy covers professional leadership in IT innovation, professional responsibilities in the use of different technologies and systems, development of standards for pharmacy IT in professional education and training, and contribution of pharmacists to interprofessional debates on system and terminology standards.
This policy was ratified by the English Pharmacy Board in January 2010. While the policy takes a strategic view of the use of IT by the pharmacy profession, and sets a number of long-term goals for the profession, it is likely that the policy will be revised periodically to reflect emerging issues and needs.
To view the policy, click here
If you have any queries concerning pharmacy IT issues, please contact:
Stephen Goundrey-Smith Healthcare IT Pharmacist Tel: 020 7572 2701 e-mail: stephen.goundrey-smith@rpsgb.orgIt is recognised that networking is an important way of supporting pharmacy IT innovation, encouraging practitioners to share issues and concerns. If you would like to apply to join the Society’s discussion forum on pharmacy IT, please contact:
e-mail: practice@rpsgb.org