More Local Doctors are Using Electronic Prescriptions

Tools

By Melissa Wagner

Story Published: Nov 24, 2009 at 6:42 PM PDT

Yakima - Walgreen stores filled a record number of prescriptions electronically last month. In fact, pharmacies say electronic prescriptions surged by triple digits in 2009. KIMA spoke to doctors and pharmacists in Yakima who agree, it's the wave of the health system future.

When Dr. Deborah Brown treats patients at Cornerstone Medical Clinic, you won't find her carrying around a paper chart. Almost everything is done on the computer. Even prescriptions.

" You can do it while you're in the room talking to the patient. If they need a refill and you're on the computer you can just prescribe while you're talking to them," said Dr. Brown.

Electronic-prescribing cuts out the paper sending it straight to the pharmacy.

Memorial Hospital Pharmacist, Scott VanHoren said, " It definitely speeds up the overall process. It's always a hassle to stop and call the physician and interrupt what they're doing."

Dr. Brown has been e-prescribing for the last 4 years. She says it's also a great way to cut down on prescription fraud. But it is still a new, imperfect technology, and with that comes risks. Like the potential for hackers to get into their system and do damage. And missing emails.

Dr. Brown said, " We've prescribed it to the pharmacy, but maybe their line is busy and it gets hung up on the server."

" That's probably an issue with any sort of technology. Downtime, system management, because it's still relatively new. But in the end the whole health care system is going this direction," said VanHoren.

And for Brown and thousands of doctors across the state, the benefits of e-prescribing still far outweighs the potential risks.

Medicare also gives financial incentives for practitioners who use e-prescribing with more than 50% of their patients. That can only mean a continued surge in electronic prescriptions.

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