Georgia launches electronic prescription system

Georgia is taking a step into the future by launching an electronic prescription system that will enhance safety and quality of how medicines are prescribed by doctors.

Today Georgia’s Health Minister David Sergeenko announced doctors in Georgia will soon have the ability to electronically prescribe medications for their patients.

The meant doctors will be able to directly send their patients’ prescription details to pharmacy computers.

This method will significantly reduce the number of paper-based prescriptions, which are heavily used in Georgia today.

Furthermore, electronic prescription aimed to decrease associated mistakes that may occur from being reliant on handwritten prescriptions that can be hard to read due to the scrawling text of handwritten notes.

Georgia's Minister of Health announces the launch of electronic prescription system. Photo by Georgia's Ministry of Health. 

The term electronic prescribing is defined as computer-based electronic generation, transmission, and filling of a prescription, taking the place of paper and faxed prescriptions.

About 30 pharmacies in Georgia have already tested the method of sending and receiving electronic prescriptions. All of these pharmacies were satisfied that this method would be successful in Georgia, said the Health Minister.

Looking ahead step-by-step all medical institutions and pharmacies in Georgia will be introduced to this new process and asked to introduce it into their daily operations.

[When going to the pharmacy] taking a prescription with you will not be necessary any more. When the patient goes to the pharmacy he or she should tell the pharmacist their name and their identity card number. The pharmacist will have direct access to the patient’s data and will provide the appropriate medication,” explained Sergeenko.

Currently involvement in the electronic prescription system is voluntary however in September this year the Ministry will announce the specific date when it will become mandatory for all medical institutions.

The Minister said the next stage in this process was to transfer patients’ medical data and research into an electronic database that can be accessed by medical experts.