Evaluating the impact of electronic prescription services on workflow efficiencies in community pharmacies of Dublin, Ireland.

Abstract

The integration of Electronic Prescription Services (EPS) represents a significant advancement in the healthcare sector, designed to enhance the accuracy and efficiency of prescription management. By enabling the electronic transmission of prescriptions from healthcare providers to pharmacies, EPS aims to reduce the errors associated with traditional paper-based prescriptions and streamline pharmacy operations. Despite its potential benefits, the implementation of EPS presents various challenges, including technical integration and the need for comprehensive staff training.

This research investigates the impact of Electronic Prescription Services (EPS) on community pharmacies in Dublin, Ireland, examining areas such as prescription accuracy, workflow efficiency, pharmacist satisfaction, and implementation challenges. EPS, an advancement in healthcare, facilitates the electronic transmission of prescriptions from healthcare providers to pharmacies, aiming to enhance patient safety, streamline operations, and reduce errors compared to traditional paper prescriptions. Despite EPS’s potential benefits, including improved prescription accuracy and operational efficiency, community pharmacies face challenges such as technical integration issues and the need for effective staff training. This study employs a quantitative methodology, using surveys distributed to pharmacists and pharmacy staff, to evaluate these impacts comprehensively.

Adopting a pragmatic research philosophy and an inductive approach, the study collects and analyzes primary data to understand the operational changes brought about by EPS. Data analysis, performed using JASP software, involved descriptive and inferential statistical techniques, including Chi-square and Kendall’s Tau tests, to assess relationships between EPS implementation and various performance metrics.

The findings reveal significant associations: improved communication with prescribers correlates moderately with reduced prescription errors, and overall pharmacist satisfaction is strongly associated with the ease of EPS use and improvements in medication inventory management. Workflow efficiency showed notable improvements in prescription processing time, daily volume, patient waiting time, and counselling ability, though increased processing time was linked to reduced efficiency. Confidence in EPS is high, particularly regarding its role in identifying potential medication interactions. The study concludes that EPS positively impacts several facets of pharmacy operations, enhancing prescription accuracy, workflow efficiency, and pharmacist satisfaction, while increasing confidence in the system. Nonetheless, further attention is needed to address training and technical challenges associated with EPS implementation.