News
US survey shows overwhelming benefits of eprescribing
7 March 2008
Efforts to expand the use of eprescribing technology in the US has
received an important boost from new research showing that doctors who
have used it believe that it allows them to practice safer and better
medicine.
A major obstacle to widespread adoption of eprescribing has been
perception of doctors' resistance. But a new survey of 500 physician
practices that have participated in a three-year pilot program
demonstrates that a large majority of doctors and their staff who use
the technology find it beneficial.
According to the survey conducted by HaldyMcIntosh & Associates for
the Southeastern Michigan ePrescribing Initiative (SEMI), three out of
four prescribers believe strongly that eprescribing improves safety for
their patients, and nearly 70% say it improves the quality of care.
One of the important benefits of eprescribing cited by physicians is
the safety alerts that warn of potentially harmful drug–drug
interactions and drug-allergy risks at the time of prescribing.
Nearly 65% of physician eprescribers reported at least one incident
of changing a prescription in response to a safety alert received
through the system — a strong statistic demonstrating that eprescribing
can help prevent against dangerous and costly adverse drug events.
SEMI is a broad coalition that includes General Motors, Ford Motor
Company, Chrysler LLC, the United Auto Workers (UAW), Blue Cross Blue
Shield of Michigan, Health Alliance Plan, Henry Ford Medical Group,
Medco Health Solutions, Inc., CVS Caremark Corporation, RxHub, LLC and
SureScripts. The survey polled physician practices participating in the
SEMI program to gain insight into their attitudes toward and experience
with ePrescribing.
Survey results show that more than 70% of respondents are very
satisfied with eprescribing technology. More than 80% of all
prescriptions written by those polled are currently done electronically,
and four out of 10 now only write eprescriptions.
"As a participant in SEMI, I experienced firsthand the valuable
benefits of eprescribing, and it is encouraging to see that my fellow
physicians are also recognizing this value and embracing the
technology," said Dr Steven Grant, MD, FACP, president/CEO, United
Physicians, PC. "If more physicians take the leap and implement
eprescribing into their practices, they will see that eprescribing can
be an important partner in providing safe, high quality care for
patients."
Past concerns voiced by physicians hesitant to adopt eprescribing
technology include the difficulties and time demands of learning a new
technology and questions over its usefulness. Findings from the survey
could help assuage those concerns:
- for 90%, eprescribing met or exceeded their expectations;
- more than 70% saw a reduction in communications with pharmacies
over prescription questions; for 40%, the reduction was substantial.
Research shows that physicians typically spend more than three hours
a day handling phone calls and extra work from prescription issues;
and
- more than half strongly agree that eprescribing saves clinicians
time and increases productivity.
Cost savings
Based on the survey findings, the SEMI partners will extend the
initiative and continue to enroll physicians through June 30.
While respondents widely agree on many important benefits of
eprescribing, there is less of a consensus when it comes to cost
savings. Two out of three of those polled report being more likely to
prescribe a generic or plan-preferred drug when using an eprescribing
system. However, one in four physicians believe that the technology may
not reduce costs for their patients or their practice.
"We know that eprescribers are more likely to engage in cost-savings
practices, such as prescribing a lower-cost alternative, and in some
cases it may mean a substantial reduction in a patient's costs," said
John Driscoll, president of new markets for Medco. "What is striking
about these survey findings is that physicians who make the transition
to eprescribing become big fans of what the technology does for their
practice and their patients, and it's important that we continue to work
toward changing the perception among doctors who are not making that
connection."
Results released in 2007 from the SEMI program support the survey
findings that eprescribing improves safety and formulary compliance. A
review of 3.3 million electronic prescriptions written by physicians
participating in SEMI showed the following:
- when a formulary alert was presented, the physician changed the
prescription 39% of the time to comply with formulary requirements.
- there were more than 1 million alerts sent on moderate to severe
drug- to-drug risks, resulting in nearly 423,000 (41%) of those
prescriptions being changed or canceled by the prescribing doctor.
- More than 100,000 medication allergy alerts were presented, of
which more than 41,000 (41%) were acted upon.
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