But Nelson points out that there are security problems involved in working outside the practice's computer network. Not only does the browser need to have a secure connection, but patient data that remains in the iPad or smart phone memory must also be erased regularly. In addition, she points out, you can't download demographic data from a practice management system or share data with a partner unless your device is on the network.
Most doctors who prescribe through their EHRs are still using old-fashioned wired PCs or laptops or tablets that are wirelessly connected to a network. If you decide to use an iPad for e-prescribing, you can select the Wi-Fi option and stay in the network.
Other features to look for
A robust e-prescribing application, whether standalone or part of an EHR, should include good decision support features. These would include the ability to choose medications from a comprehensive therapeutic list and to check the drug you want to prescribe against the patient's other medications for potential adverse interactions. Hashey likes his EHR's e-prescribing drug-disease checker, which warns him, for example, not to prescribe NSAIDs to a patient with stomach ulcer.
Physicians tend to dislike overactive alerts in e-prescribing programs, notes Dunn. But Hashey says that in his EHR, he can adjust the level of alerts, and he's moved them to the highest level so they can't slow him down.
You should also make sure that your e-prescribing program can be connected with Surescripts so that you can send prescriptions online to pharmacies. This virtually eliminates the chance of error at the pharmacy, because the pharmacist doesn't have to manually enter your prescriptions into her system. Since pharmacists can also send refill requests online, it reduces the work for your staff and the burden on your phones.
Surescripts, which says that it links medical offices to 90 percent of the pharmacies in the country, provides medication histories and benefit and formulary information for about two-thirds of U.S. patients. But less than a quarter of e-prescribing applications that can send scripts online to pharmacies are capable of downloading both patient histories and formularies, according to Surescripts. Hutchinson says all of the major EHRs can do this, but this is an area where due diligence would serve you well.
Electronic prescribing can be one of the most rewarding and effective ways of moving your office toward paperless systems, and is one of the easiest applications to master. Whether you e-prescribe in an EHR or do it with standalone software, you'll reduce the chance of prescribing errors, make your office more efficient, and please your patients by having prescriptions ready to pick up at the pharmacy when they arrive. But remember that e-prescribing will require changes in your office processes. As Hutchinson says, "It's not just about the software, it's about the work flow."