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OUR VISION:
“Making the prescribing, dispensing and administration of medicines everywhere in Wales easier, safer, more efficient and effective for patients and professionals through digital.”
| | WELCOME TO THE MAY DIGITAL MEDICINES NEWSLETTER! | | The national Secondary Care electronic Prescribing and Medicines Administration (ePMA) Programme is really gathering pace this month, with Powys Teaching Health Board the latest to announce it has chosen Better as its system supplier. We’re also celebrating the news that the ‘game-changing’ Primary Care Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) is now available in more than half of the community pharmacies in Wales, making things easier and safer for patients and healthcare staff. Find out more! | | Digital transformation set to improve hospital care for patients in Powys | | |
Patients are set to benefit from an exciting digital transformation in Powys, as a significant step forward is taken towards safer and more efficient prescribing and medicines administration in hospitals.
Powys Teaching Health Board (PTHB) has chosen Better as its technology partner to support delivery of electronic Prescribing and Medicines Administration (ePMA), which will revolutionise medicines management within the health board’s community hospitals and other healthcare settings.
This new digital system will streamline prescribing by reducing the use of paper in hospitals, freeing up time for clinicians. ePMA will help to ensure that information is captured accurately, up to date and readily available, which will reduce the risk of medication errors and improve patient care.
The implementation of ePMA in Wales is a key part of the national Digital Medicines programme, led by Digital Health and Care Wales (DHCW) and supported and funded by Welsh Government.
Dr Kate Wright, Medical Director for Powys Teaching Health Board, said: “By moving to a fully digital system for prescribing and medicine management in Powys hospitals, we will be able to increase patient safety and simplify processes for staff. I am really excited for this project to be rolled out across Powys and am grateful for the investment from Welsh Government.”
The ePMA programme will provide several benefits to colleagues and patients such as access to digital records 24/7, a reduction in administrative errors and the ability to audit prescribing and administrative activity.
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Dr Lesley Hewer, DHCW Chair of the National ePMA Programme, said: “The clinical staff in Powys Teaching Health Board have worked hard with their digital colleagues to ensure that the system which best suits their needs has been chosen. The new digital system will help improve patient safety through a reduction in medication errors and help us decrease our use of paper, which will not just save time searching for charts but will also help the environment, too.”
Božidarka Radović, Product Director for Better, said: "We are thrilled to partner with Powys Teaching Health Board to support their journey toward safer and more efficient medicines management. By streamlining processes and ensuring accurate, accessible information, we look forward to supporting clinicians in delivering safer, more efficient care to patients across Powys. We believe this collaboration is a natural extension of our mission to improve patient safety and enhance the quality of care."
Chief Pharmaceutical Officer for Wales Andrew Evans said: “This is excellent news for clinicians who are providing excellent care and patients receiving it in hospitals within the Powys Teaching Health Board area. This announcement is yet another important milestone reached in Wales’ national ePMA programme which will result in significant improvements in safety and efficiency in every health board and trust in Wales.”
PTHB is the latest heath board in Wales to announce a partnership with Better, following announcements from Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board and Aneurin Bevan University Health Board. You can read more about the national ePMA programme here.
Inset photo: Dr Lesley Hewer, National eMPA Chair
| | 'Game changing' Electronic Prescription Service now live in more than half of community pharmacies in Wales | | |
A digital service described by healthcare staff as ‘game-changing’ and ‘the best thing we’ve ever done’ is now available in more than 50% of community pharmacies in Wales.
The Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) Programme, which is led by Digital Health and Care Wales (DHCW) and makes the prescribing process easier and safer for patients and healthcare professionals, reached the milestone this month as a phased rollout to all communities in Wales gathers momentum.
EPS includes a prescription tracking tool allowing pharmacy and GP staff to see at all times where a prescription is, which isn’t possible with paper prescriptions.
Pharmacist Steffan John of Fferyllwyr Llyn in Blaenau Ffestiniog, Gwynedd, said: “EPS has been a massive change for the better for the pharmacy and has saved so much time already. We no longer have to call the GP surgery numerous times a day to track down prescriptions. It’s been game-changing, really.”
Seven community pharmacy systems have been assured to roll out EPS across Wales, supported by one GP system. Fferyllwyr Llyn started using EPS in September 2024 using Invatech’s Titan Patient Medication Record (PMR) software.
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Steffan added: “Our patients have really noticed the difference and have been surprised by how much quicker it can be. They don’t have to bring over a piece of paper, and by the time they get to us their prescription has been dispensed and is waiting on the shelf.
“Using Titan PMR and EPS has allowed us to have a paperless dispensary. Prescriptions are clinically checked on screen, which generates a pick list for dispensing staff on a hand-held device. Labels are then produced by scanning the product barcode. The process is completely paperless as even the claiming is done electronically.”
Simon Nelson, pharmacist and owner of Nelson's Pharmacy in Tredegar, Blaenau Gwent, which uses Cegedim Rx’s Pharmacy Manager software, said: “For the pharmacy, it's so much easier because now there's full visibility and traceability for the GP, the pharmacy and for the patient about where their prescription is at any given time.
“Patients are astounded to learn that they can now have their prescription sent electronically instead of having to chase around for it. For the GP surgery, they save time and effort because there's no paper. The doctor signs those prescriptions electronically. For the pharmacy, we receive them electronically and for the patient it's much more of a seamless process and they can be far more assured of where their prescription is at any one time.”
EPS marks one of the biggest changes in decades to the way NHS Wales manages prescriptions, and brings a number of benefits to patients, healthcare staff and the environment. These include fewer calls between the pharmacy and GP surgery, a move towards reducing the need to print prescriptions and saved journeys for patients and staff.
The service is live at more than 15% of GP practices, a figure which is increasing every week. It is also available at 75% of dispensing appliance contractors, which dispense medical appliances and equipment given on prescription. DHCW is working with health boards, GP practices and pharmacies to make EPS available across Wales as quickly and safely as possible.
Read the full story and find out more about EPS here.
Main photo: Simon Nelson of Nelson's Pharmacy.
Photo 2, l-r: Llyr Hughes and Steffan John of Fferyllwyr Llyn.
| | EPS-live pharmacies: NHS England needs you! | | |
NHS England is undertaking a pilot study to test a new tool for tracking EPS prescriptions and is looking for pharmacies where EPS is live to help. The pilot will run for approximately six weeks in May and June and will serve as a small-scale test for further research.
The pilot involves speaking to a researcher for about 45-60 minutes, with the possibility of a further visit to your site. If EPS is live at your pharmacy and you’re interested in taking part, please fill in the expression of interest form here.
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Excellent engagement at Aneurin Bevan University Health Board
hospitals ePMA roadshow
| | Aneurin Bevan University Health Board (ABUHB) hosted an ePMA roadshow between April 28 and May 2, offering a valuable opportunity to showcase hardware to colleagues and provide live demonstrations of the ePMA system. | | |
The week-long event across five hospital sites welcomed more than 500 staff members from a diverse range of clinical and non-clinical backgrounds. Feedback from attendees was extremely positive, with a significant number choosing to sign up to become Digital Champions to play a vital role in supporting the wider programme implementation.
A number of questions were asked at the events, as well as concerns being addressed. These included identifying the specific clinical areas that require further engagement to better understand existing processes.
The roadshow was supported by staff from ABUHB's equipment provider, Kinetic-ID, who demonstrated and collected user feedback on the ePMA hardware, and ABUHB’s software partner Better, whose team was on hand to answer questions. Colleagues from social and economic development agency Cwmpas also joined the ePMA team to conduct digital literacy questionnaires, which will help shape staff training plans.
Photo 1: The National Secondary Care ePMA team with colleagues from Aneurin Bevan University Health Board and Better UK.
Photo 2, l-r: James Goddard, Hospital e-Prescribing Lead at DHCW, and Robert Weller, ePMA Pharmacist at Aneurin Bevan UHB.
| | EPS go-live readiness drop-in session | | |
DHCW is running a drop-in session at the end of this month for pharmacy contractors who want to know more about the readiness process for going live with EPS. The session will focus on the readiness activities required, what contractors need to do and how long the process takes. It is open to all contractors who are not yet live with EPS.
The session will take place via Microsoft Teams on Wednesday, May 28 at 7:30-8:30pm and there will be time for questions following the presentation. Please email pc.eps@wales.nhs.uk if you wish to receive an invite.
| | Read previous editions of our newsletter | | Join our ePMA Community of Knowledge and Action | | Engagement and collaboration is key in the rollout and preparation of ePMA in our hospitals in Wales, and our Community of Knowledge and Action (CoKA) meetings are a friendly and supportive forum for health staff to share knowledge and learn from each other. The next meetings will take place on June 19 and July 17 and you can register or find out more by emailing DHCW.ePMA@wales.nhs.uk. | | Primary Care EPS Programme Oversight Chair Jenny Pugh-Jones writes a monthly bulletin for GPs, community pharmacies and dispensers with all the latest news and updates about electronic prescriptions, including signposting to essential user guides. You can join the mailing list here. | | |
Digital Medicines is making the prescribing, dispensing and administration of medicines, easier, safer, more efficient and effective for patients and professionals through digital. It brings together the programmes and projects that will deliver the benefits of a fully digital prescribing approach in all care settings in Wales.
If you would like to know more about our work or have a suggestion about how we can engage with you, please let us know.
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