27 Oct Electronic Prescriptions More Likely To Be Filled By Patients
MedicalResearch.com Interview with:
Dr.Adewole S. Adamson
Adewole S. Adamson, MD, MPP
Department of Dermatology
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Chapel Hill, NC
MedicalResearch.com: What is the background for this study?
Response: As the United States has moved to increasing levels of electronic medical record keeping, electronic prescribing has become an important part of improving the quality of care and patient experience. E-prescribing increases co-ordination between pharmacist and physician and decreases prescription errors. However, it is less certain whether e-prescribing affects patient primary adherence to medications, meaning whether or not a patient will fill and pick up their medication at the pharmacy. Although it may seem intuitive that primary adherence would increase by removing the patient from the prescription-to-pharmacy routing process, there have been few studies directly comparing primary adherence of patients given traditional paper prescriptions versus e-prescriptions.
MedicalResearch.com: What are the main findings?
Response: A total of 4318 prescriptions were written for 2496 patients. The overall rate of primary nonadherence was 31.6% (n = 788). Based on multivariable analysis, the risk of primary nonadherence was 16 percentage points lower among patients given an electronic prescription (15.2%) than patients given a paper prescription (31.5%).
Primary nonadherence decreased with increasing age, then increased in elderly patients 70 years and older. When patients were given more than 3 prescriptions their likelihood of filling all their prescriptions declined. In this population, patients identifying English as their primary language had the highest rate of primary nonadherence compared with non-English speakers.
MedicalResearch.com: What should readers take away from your report?
Response: Patients are more likely to fill and pick up medications if they are prescribed in an electronic format. Patient given more than 3 prescriptions were more likely to abandon some or all of their prescriptions at the pharmacy.
MedicalResearch.com: What recommendations do you have for future research as a result of this study?
Response: Steps should be taken to better understand why primary nonadherence happens and how it can be improved.
MedicalResearch.com: Is there anything else you would like to add?
Response: During the first 4 days from the clinic visit, patients with paper prescriptions had a higher rate of full adherence than electronic prescriptions. Although this study was not designed to establish a cause, it is possible that having a paper prescription served as a tangible reminder for patients to fill and pick up their prescription in the short term. However, in the longer term, lost or misplaced paper prescriptions could have led to a diminished likelihood of full adherence.
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Last Updated on October 27, 2016 by Marie Benz MD FAAD