As I researched the internet for this blog topic, a news item popped up that was posted just yesterday: “Minnesota lawmakers are taking on the opioid epidemic Tuesday [February 21, 2017].”
How timely! And coincidental that I am focusing on the ePrescribing component of XLDent’s software suite. And that they are located in Minnesota. Cosmic.
Minnesota’s attorney general Lori Swanson says the US population makes up less than 5% of the people on the planet, yet they account for 80% of the world’s painkiller consumption. According to the Department of Health and Human Services, more than 650,000 opioid prescriptions are dispensed every day. In 2014, the total prescriptions written exceeded 240 million. That was more than enough for every single US adult to have their own bottle of pills back then, so you know the number has to be higher in 2017. This phenomenon has led to an increase in heroin use, with four of five new users having started out abusing opioids. And since 1999, the opioid overdose/death rate has quadrupled to more than 165,000 a year.
So, back to the Midwest. The Minnesota legislature is considering four bills, one of which focuses on an increased patient drug monitoring program. The trend toward allowing practitioners to use eprescribing for Schedule II-V controlled substances will help keep track of how many people are on pain pills, for how long, and maybe (hopefully) whether it’s time to wean them off. eprescribing is permitted by law in all 50 states and DC. Some states already require that most drugs be electronically prescribed. And the majority of pharmacies are processing controlled-substance eprescriptions.
eprescribing is a natural offshoot of the electronic health record, a technology that has already proven to improve diagnostics, treatment, and patient outcomes, and is part of many a dental office’s smoothly running machine. Here are some of the advantages and benefits of getting up to speed with eprescribing:
1. Prevent prescribing errors—eliminate confusion caused by illegible handwriting.
2. Reduce fraud and abuse (stolen, forged, altered prescriptions).
2. Simplify the process of determining dosage, and avoid duplicating therapy.
3. Identify drug-drug interactions, allergies, and life-stage considerations.
4. Track prescription fulfillment, to confirm compliance and alert to potential drug abuse.
5. Save time on prescription refill requests.
6. Make it easier to choose medications that patients' insurance will cover.
More states are going to ban handwritten prescriptions, as the benefits of eprescribing bury the disadvantages of the handwritten script. XLDent is the first company to integrate ePrescribing into their dental practice management software. Tying your patient’s up-to-date medical and medication history to the LexiComp medication database and alert system is going to improve your ability to prescribe the appropriate meds, monitor their use, and have peace of mind that the potential for errors and overuse is greatly reduced.