In an industry that sometimes feels slow to change, there has been a steady drumbeat across all of healthcare to begin putting more digital tools in place for convenience, reporting, tracking, and because of government regulations.
ePrescribing is becoming a top-of-the-list item for new ways healthcare entities deliver care. Because of changes in policy over the last couple of years, it is becoming a necessity, especially if your practice prescribes controlled substances.

Technology has revolutionized many aspects of healthcare, including the dental industry. ePrescribing, the electronic transmission of prescriptions, offers numerous benefits to dental practices. Practice Management Software providers like Open Dental offer this technology, but you could overlook your need to utilize it. If you’re wondering whether your dental practice is ready to embrace ePrescribing, here are four conversations to explore to determine your dental practice’s ePrescribing readiness.

Your practice is growing:

As your dental practice grows and you find yourself treating a larger number of patients, managing prescriptions becomes increasingly time-consuming. Paper-based prescriptions can be prone to errors and delays, and take you out of your current digital workflows. If you’re struggling to keep up with prescription requests and refills, it might indicate that your practice is ready for ePrescribing. Electronic prescriptions enable seamless communication between your dental practice and pharmacies, streamlining the prescription process and reducing the risk of errors.

Moreover, ePrescribing solutions like DoseSpot often provide features that enhance prescription management, such as electronic medication history and formulary checks. These tools enable dentists to review a patient’s medication history and check for potential drug interactions or allergies before prescribing a new medication. By having access to comprehensive patient information at their fingertips, dental professionals can make more informed decisions about treatment plans, ensuring optimal patient care.

It’s time to simplify clinical workflows to spend more time with patients:

Implementing an ePrescribing system will reduce the time spent on pharmacy calls and faxes while reducing clinical errors and time spent deciphering a provider’s handwriting. Automation and electronic efficiency will allow dentists to focus on high-quality care and spend more time having meaningful dialogue with their patients. Built-in transparency tools such as Real-Time Prescription Benefit; increase the value of treatment because providers can more easily provide affordable medication options based on each patient’s specific insurance coverage and formulary. Other tools like Electronic Prior Authorization (ePA) allow for the quick and painless submission of prior authorization requests, so your patients can begin treatment sooner.

You want to lower costs:

ePrescribing reduces costs associated with administrative tasks for providers and pharmacies by saving time and resources. In a 2020 study published by the Annals of Internal Medicine®, it was noted that 34.2% of healthcare expenditures are on administration, not treatment. This figure amounts to over $812 billion, or $2497 per capita.

There are also high costs associated with prescriptions that were not correctly prescribed. Medication errors, as defined by the National Coordinating Council for Medication Error and Prevention (NCCMERP), are considered “… any preventable event that may cause or lead to inappropriate medication use or patient harm, while the medication is in the control of the health care professional, patient, or consumer. Such events may be related to professional practice, health care products, procedures, and systems, including prescribing; order communication; product labeling, packaging, and nomenclature; compounding; dispensing; distribution; administration; education; monitoring; and use”. Utilizing an ePrescribing solution can help to minimize these errors because safeguards such as drug-allergy or drug-drug interactions are carefully monitored in the software alerting prescribers of potential dangers.

Combatting prescription drug abuse and meeting increasing compliance requirements:

The abuse of controlled substances, particularly opioids, is not slowing down. The good news is that ePrescribing can help. Patients will no longer have access to a paper prescription which can easily be lost, stolen, or tampered with since the prescription will be sent directly to the pharmacy. Access to patients’ medication history can assist providers in knowing if this patient is doctor-shopping or scheduling appointments with multiple providers trying to obtain controlled substances without the other providers knowing. Visibility is key, and at least 20 states have enacted laws to help combat this problem.

Dental practices are subject to various regulations, including those related to controlled substances and prescription drug monitoring programs. If you find yourself spending significant time manually checking compliance requirements or if the regulatory burden is increasing, implementing ePrescribing can help simplify the process and ensure adherence to regulations. ePrescribing platforms often integrate with state prescription drug monitoring programs, allowing dentists to access patient medication histories and ensure compliance.

Are you ready for ePrescribing?

If your dental practice is experiencing a growing patient base, grappling with compliance requirements, seeking improved cost efficiency and accuracy, and needing workflow simplification, it may be time to explore ePrescribing solutions. By adopting an ePrescribing solution, your dental practice can streamline the prescription process, enhance patient safety, and improve overall operational efficiency.

DoseSpot ePrescribing is fully integrated into Open Dental and readily available when your Dental Practice is ready to make the switch.