NHS Digital has announced the go live of the service that ensures a notification for urgent supply of medicines is delivered directly into a patient record.
Electronic notifications are currently in use for the urgent supply of medicines and are typically sent automatically from pharmacies and received by GP practices as a workflow task. The new system allows for GP systems to receive structured information, so details can be added directly to a patient’s record, without the need to transcribe them manually.
The content of the electronic notification is based on the pharmacy information flows data standard which has been developed in partnership with the Professional Record Standards Body.
Ian Lowry, Director of Medication, Social Care, Child Health and Maternity at NHS Digital, said: “This latest stage in the rollout means that a number of GP practices and community pharmacies in England are able to benefit from electronic notifications rather than the current method of email or paper.”
“This saves time for both pharmacy and GP practice staff and supports integrated working between care settings when patients need to access essential medicines in an emergency.”
Dr Masood Nazir, Director of Digital Primary Care at NHSX, said: “The urgent supply of medicines should be as straightforward as possible for patients, GP practice and pharmacy staff, particularly during the pandemic and as we look towards winter.”
“By sending notifications electronically, we will make life easier for the staff at local pharmacies and family doctors and increase safety for patients, which is arguably more important than ever – this is why we have commissioned NHS Digital to accelerate this important work.”
