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Connecticut Governor Pushing for Opioid e-Prescribing Come 2018

Posted April 24, 2017 by Jennifer G

medications-342462_1920This past Valentine’s Day, Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy addressed the crowd in a rather somber tone. He went on to explain that he experienced yet another unfortunate morning passage – reading the obituary of a young local who has tragically passed due to an opioid overdose. However, he’s now taking action and has outlined several steps to fight this drug crisis.

Not only did state funding increase to further address the disease of opioid addiction, but in January he introduced a series of legislative proposals, including one that will require all opioid prescriptions to be electronically prescribed in Connecticut.

In 2015, Connecticut experienced 900 deaths because of opioids. Currently, prescribers in the state have a choice whether to prescribe opioid medication electronically or on paper, but Malloy said going completely electronic will “reduce the potential fraud and create a system of trackable data.”

Governor Malloy also realizes the insight electronic prescribing provides as a means to increasing patient safety. “A pad of paper doesn’t come from a particular site. It is hard to trace,” Malloy said. “If you do it electronically, you can instantaneously trace, and it’s easier for us to document who is getting the drug, and who is prescribing the drug.”

Paper prescriptions which are the alternative to e-Prescriptions leave room for translation errors by the pharmacy, but also opens the door for patients to alter, lose, steal, or sell handwritten prescriptions.

In addition to increased patient safety, opioid e-Prescribing will:

  • Combat the rising issue of prescription fraud within a dental practice, including misuse of a dentist’s DEA number, forged signatures, and stolen prescription pads by patients or an Insider Threat.
  • Add to patient convenience by reducing wait times in pharmacies.
  • Allow a prescriber to query a patient’s medication history at point of care in order to determine if they are “doctor shopping”, or visiting multiple prescribers strictly to receive opioid prescriptions.
  • Increase patient medication pick-up adherence. Between 28% and 31% of all paper prescriptions either never make it to the pharmacy or are not picked up at all.

To put it simply, opioid e-Prescribing is one of the most effective solutions that is being rightfully viewed by Governor Malloy as a necessary tool in the state’s arsenal to combat the ever increasing opioid crisis.

For the protection of patients across Connecticut, Governor Malloy is urging for this imperative legislation to be effective as of January 1, 2018.

Click here to read the proposed bill. [See Sec. 3. Section 21a-249.]

Get more information about ePrescribing and start protecting yourself and patients today!

Sources: New Haven Register; CT News Junkie; WNPR

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Pennsylvania’s Recent e-Prescribing Legislation: What You Need to Know

Posted March 21, 2017 by Jennifer G

Video Courtesy of Penn Live

Pennsylvania experienced an astounding 3,264 opioid overdose deaths in 2015, a 20.1% increase from 2014. With the rising, devastating numbers in tow, Pennsylvania has decided to take further action and follow suit with New York and Maine.

On February 6, 2017,  Pennsylvania State Senator Richard Alloway and Pennsylvania State Representative Tedd Nesbit announced the introduction of legislation that will require all opioid prescriptions such as OxyContin®, Percocet®, and Norco® to be electronically prescribed (e-Prescribed) in Pennsylvania.

This legislation was initiated shortly after Pennsylvania introduced a more robust Prescription Drug Monitoring Program and is meant to help reduce opioid drug diversion, decrease opioid overdose deaths, and increase overall patient safety.

“In 2017, it just plain makes sense to prescribe the most addictive, but necessary, medication through e-Prescribing.” – Penn Live

Paper prescriptions which are the alternative to e-Prescriptions leave room for translation errors by the pharmacy, but also opens the door for patients to alter, lose, steal, or sell handwritten prescriptions.

In addition to increased patient safety, opioid e-Prescribing will:

  • Combat the rising issue of prescription fraud within a dental practice, including misuse of a dentist’s DEA number, forged signatures, and stolen prescription pads by patients or an Insider Threat. Get your copy of the Insider Threat eBook here.
  • Add to patient convenience by reducing wait times in pharmacies.
  • Ensure that any drug-drug and drug-allergy interactions based on a patient’s medication history are found and reported to the dentist before the prescription order is completed.
  • Increase patient medication pick-up adherence. Between 28% and 31% of all paper prescriptions either never make it to the pharmacy or are not picked up at all.

To put it simply, opioid e-Prescribing is one of the most effective solutions that is being rightfully viewed as an optimal tool by the state of Pennsylvania to combat the ever increasing opioid crisis.

For the protection of patients, the General Assembly is being urged to pass this vital legislation before June 30, 2017. Click here to read the proposed bill.

Get more information about ePrescribing and schedule a demo today!

Sources: OpenPR; Penn Live; PA State Legislation; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Pennsylvania Department of Health

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Understanding Risk from a Clinical Perspective

Posted January 24, 2017 by Dawn

Whether you’re just getting started or a seasoned vet, every dentist has heard the phrase “If it’s not in the chart, it didn’t happen.” And, even though we’ve all heard it before, many dentists continue to repeat the bad habits of their predecessors, leaving themselves at risk for malpractice lawsuits and fraud. In today’s blog, we’ll explore the clinical aspects to risk management in the dental office.

The Dental Chart

In order for the dental chart, or electronic dental record, to be defensible in a court of law, it needs to provide a consistent and detailed account of events. Let’s look more closely at some of the key components to the dental chart and ways to safeguard your practice.

Health History

While most practices are good about obtaining health history information at the time of a patient’s initial visit, many fail to maintain consistency when it comes to updating information. With a lot of dentists counting on hygienists and assistants to update health history information, it’s easy to get lazy with your review of this information. Never assume that your hygienist or assistant will tell you about important changes. Make it a habit to review the information in your electronic dental record prior to each patient encounter and document this in your clinical progress note. The recent addition of the Medical Tab in the XLDent chart helps clinicians view and update medical conditions and medications easily.

Pre-Treatment Diagnosis

Failure to document a definitive diagnosis is a common weakness to the electronic dental record in many practices. The clinical progress note should reflect your diagnosis and the findings that led to your diagnosis. Supporting items, like radiographs and treatment plans, will also help strengthen and validate your progress note. Additionally, your documentation must reflect the treatment options that were recommended and alternatives that were discussed with the patient.

Informed Consent

ink form consentPrior to treatment, the dentist bears the responsibility of obtaining informed consent from the patient to perform the procedures that were diagnosed. For most, the process to obtain consent involves a conversation with the patient that results in patient understanding and acceptance of the treatment that will be provided. When it comes to malpractice claims, lack of consent is frequently cited. At a minimum, the clinical progress note should reference the process used to obtain consent and that the patient consented to the treatment provided. For riskier procedures, consider obtaining consent in writing to help support your clinical note. One such method is clinical consent forms that are signed on the tablet pc when using XLDent’s Ink Forms.

Medications

ePrescribeEven in 2017, many prescribers will be the victim of prescription theft or tampering. Sending prescriptions to the pharmacy electronically offers greater protection for the prescriber, reducing the risk of fraud. Additionally, ePrescribing software offers safety measures for the patient. When creating a prescription electronically, ePrescribing software will alert you of drug interactions caused by allergies or other medications.

 

 

 

We hope these recommendations will help you minimize the risk of fraud or error in your clinical settings. If you found this information helpful, be sure to check out Part II of our risk management series next week as we look at the role infrastructure technology plays in managing risk.

 

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The Insider Threat

Posted November 29, 2016 by Jennifer G

How Well Do You Really Know Your Dental Staff?

computer-screen-with-personIn recent years the trusting relationship between dentists and their staff has come under scrutiny. Questions such as ‘how much control should my staff have?’ or ‘can my staff have access to my prescription pad?’ are questions posed in a dental office on a day-to-day basis, or so we hope.

With 58% of dentists falling victim to prescription fraud, an issue that seems to be hitting dentists is Identity Theft. Not identity theft in the usual sense, but specifically the misuse of a dentist’s DEA number, forged signatures and stolen prescription pads.

The culprit? The Insider Threat comprised of office staff and fellow dentists. As the opioid epidemic kicks into full gear, dental offices are seeing the highest rate of fraud yet with forged prescriptions, specifically for controlled substances, and unfortunately…read the eBook.

 

 

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The Dentist’s Role in Preventing Opioid Abuse

Posted August 3, 2016 by Jennifer G

It’s no secret that opioid abuse is soaring in America. In fact, a recent NBC Nightly News report put dentists back in the hot seat. If you haven’t seen, “Hooked: How Opioid Abuse Starts at the Dentist for Many Americans”, watch it here. This report identifies dentists as the gateway to addiction for young people who lack prior experience with opioid prescriptions. Just a few months earlier, the JAMA identified that tooth extractions “may represent an important area of excessive opioid prescribing in the United States”. With this significant amount of attention directed towards dentists, let’s look at a few of the ways providers can make a difference using e-prescribing technology.

Patient Safety

e-PrescribeE-prescribing technology gives the prescriber tools to make safer prescription choices for patients. With e-prescribing, a list of all previously prescribed medications is available in a patient’s electronic chart. As dentists are often limited to knowing only what they have prescribed or what is self-reported, this information is critical to choosing the right prescription for your patient. Drug interaction warnings will appear automatically and include details about the interaction and how to advise patients.

Patient Education

Providers bear the responsibility to educate their patients about their prescriptions. E-prescribing makes it simple to access drug information and review it with your patient. For example, XLDent’s Electronic Prescribing embeds Lexicomp’s Online for Dentistry product for dental specific resources. Take it a step further and provide your patients with drug disposal information for unused medications.

Protect Prescriber Integrity

Dentists who handwrite or print prescriptions put themselves at risk. When the patient has the prescription in their hand, the provider loses control of what happens between the dental practice and the pharmacy. This problem is nonexistent with the use of electronic prescriptions. The possibility of patient intervention is completely removed.

In addition to these 3 ways e-prescribing can impact your practice, Doctors are recognizing increased efficiency and patient convenience. With more states looking to legislation to combat opioid abuse, those using e-prescribing technology are demonstrating a commitment to curb the problem.

Visit our website for more information about XLDent’s e-prescribing technology*.

*XLDent’s e-Prescription service works with all Dental Practice Management systems. XLDent Practice Management Software is not required.

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