NHS patients in the North of Wales are set to be the first to benefit from safer and more convenient healthcare thanks to the launch of a new electronic prescription service.
From today, GPs in Rhyl are now able to send prescriptions online to a patient’s pharmacy and thus remove the need to print a paper form – a move the Welsh Government estimates will save 40 million paper forms a year.
The new working practice also means that patients will not have to visit a GP surgery to collect a repeat prescription form.
On a visit to the two trail-blazer sites – Rhyl’s Lakeside Medical Centre and Wellington Road Pharmacy – Welsh health minister, Eluned Morgan, hailed the roll-out as a “major milestone” that will make a “huge difference” to the NHS.
The new service will get a staggered launch across the rest of the country next year and forms part of a wider commitment to introduce digital medicines and e-prescribing to Wales’ hospital and primary care sectors.
Wales’ chief pharmaceutical officer, Andrew Evans, said: “Digital innovation is key to improving the prescription service for patients and our hard-working pharmacists and GPs.”
He continued: “This is transformational change that will have a significant impact on the way we work and introduce a real change to current processes. It is critical these changes are introduced safely, which is why this live phase of testing is so important.”
To learn more about the how the NHS’s digital transformation journey is progressing, make sure to register for National Health Executive’s Digital Health virtual event to hear insight from thought leaders across the sector.
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