DuPage Medical Group recently added E‑prescribing to the many features of its electronic medical record (EMR), taking another step to improve safety and convenience for the 300,000+ patients it serves in the Chicagoland area.
E‑prescribing allows DMG physicians to send prescriptions electronically to most area retail pharmacies and many of the large mail-order pharmacies. DMG patient Candace King from Glen Ellyn said, “I had the opportunity to experience E‑prescribing on my last visit. It really saved a lot of time. When I gave my name to the pharmacy clerk, he handed me the prescription — packaged and all ready to go. I was in and out of the pharmacy in just a few minutes. I think this is a great service, and I appreciate that DMG provides it.”
DMG physicians can also now view a patient’s pharmacy benefit information when the prescription is being ordered. This real-time access to personal benefit information can allow the patient to possibly receive greater pharmacy benefits at a reduced cost. DMG patient Karen Kucera from Downers Grove said, “When I saw my doctor last month, she told me about a lower-cost option for my regular prescription. I really appreciated talking with her about which medication was best for me, instead of possibly being asked by the pharmacist if I wanted to switch to a generic.”
In the last 4 months, DMG physicians sent more than 230,000 prescriptions electronically and received more than 60,000 electronic refill requests from pharmacies. Prior to E‑prescribing, DMG nurses spent a greater amount of time on the phone with pharmacies handling prescription requests. DMG physician Mark Nelson, M.D. said, “With E‑prescribing, our nurses spend less time on the phone with the pharmacies and as a result, more time directly with patients. We’ve also greatly reduced faxing prescriptions to pharmacies, so we’re saving a lot of paper as well.”
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