Basics of Prescription

details of prescription steps and process

2. At the end of the lecture the students will be able to:
Define prescription.
Explain the different parts of prescription.
Interpret the information on the prescription.
Process the prescription order / Handle the prescription.
Define the different types of prescription.
Define Electronic prescribing and how it works.
Compare the advantages and disadvantages of Electronic
prescribing.

3. Prescription is an order from a physician,
dentist or any other registered medical
practitioner to a pharmacist for the supply of
medicine ,dressing or appliance for the
patient.

4. The concept of prescriptions dates back to the beginning of
history. So long as there were medications and a writing
system to capture directions for preparation and usage, there
were prescriptions.
Modern prescriptions are actually "extemporaneous
prescriptions" from the Latin (ex tempore) for "at/from
time"."Extemporaneous" means the prescription is written on
the spot for a specific patient with a specific ailment. This is
distinguished from a non-extemporaneous prescription which
is a generic recipe for a general ailment.

5. Prescribers office information
Patient information
Date
Rx symbol or Superscription
Medication prescribed or Inscription
Dispensing directions to the pharmacist or
Subscription
Direction for patient or Signatura
Refill ,special labeling ,and /or other instructions
Signature and registration number of prescriber

7. The patient’s name , address and age if under 12
years.
The names and quantities of the medicaments to be
supplied.
Instructions for the patient.
The prescriber’s profession ,address and signature.
The date on which the prescription was written or
signed.
Proper name labeling requirement(NP)

8. Receiving
Reading and checking
Numbering and dating
Collecting the materials
Dispense the medicine
Counsel the patient
Endorse the prescription
Collect any fee
Dispose of the prescription
Make the appropriate records and filing
Pricing

9. NHS prescription
Private prescription
Prescription for hospital inpatients
Prescription for hospital outpatients
Prescription for patients discharged from the
hospital.

10. NHS form -------------Retain until the end of month
Private form for prescription only medicine
----------------------- Retain to 2 years
Hospital inpatient form ------------- Return to ward
Hospital outpatient form --------------- Retain in
pharmacy (usually 2 years)

11. Medication errors affect more then 1.5 million Americans
each year in hospitals alone, according to the Institute of
Medicine.
Error can be made in the following areas:
Similar spellings / pronunciations / names
Inderal and Adderrall
Zyrtec and Zantac
Celebrex and Cerebyx
Others include Aciphex (for stomach reflux) and Aricept (for
memory), Allegra (for allergies) and Viagra (for erectile
dysfunction) or Fosomax (for bone) and Flomax (for veins
and arteries).

12. Incorrect dosage
Drug interactions
Human error
Doctors, notorious for bad handwriting, may choose the right
drug, but the pharmacist may read it incorrectly.
Sometimes the prescription gets transferred by phone from
the doctor's office to the pharmacy, but the people making or
receiving the phone calls make mistakes.

13. Electronic prescribing or e-prescribing is the
electronic transmission of prescription
information from the prescriber's computer to
a pharmacy computer.

15. The doctor logs on to the system and authenticates their
identity.(i.e. log on their passwords)
The doctor looks up the patient in the system.
A drug is chosen, with parameters including strength,
quantity, directions, and number of refills .
The patient's active medication list and known allergies are
reviewed for potential adverse drug reactions

16. The software may suggest alternative drugs that are either
more effective or less costly.
 Select a pharmacy that will process the order, and place the
order.
The connection may be direct peer-to-peer, but usually it is
indirectly routed over a commercial network of pharmacies
such as Sure Scripts or eRx Network.

17. Orders take the form of standardized electronic messages that
both the prescriber's system and the pharmacist's system must
implement.
The order appears in the pharmacists computer system, where
it may be filled.
The patient shows up at the pharmacy to pick up and pay for
their medications.

18. It improves beneficiary health outcomes
It improves quality and efficiency
It helps in reducing costs by actively promoting
appropriate drug usage
It speeds up the process of renewing medications
It reduces the incidence of drug interaction
It saves the time of pharmacist

19. Each prescription can be checked electronically
Reducing / eliminating the error.
Information on prescription can be linked with the
patient’s medical records.
Refill request can be expedited.
Facilitation of data transfer between physician and
pharmacist.

20. Accidental data entry errors such as selecting the wrong
patient or clicking on the wrong choice in a menu of dosages.
Inadvertently divulging protected health information on the
internet through inadequate security practices
Inability to use electronic prescribing when the power is out

22. THANX FOR ATTENTION
REFERENCES:
Pharmaceutical practice
DM Collett
Pg # 61 -72
The science and practice of pharmacy
Remington
Pg #1823-1839