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A pharmacy in Wales has dispensed the 100,000th prescription item using the country’s electronic prescription service (EPS).
In a statement published on 26 September 2024, Digital Health and Care Wales (DHCW) said the medication was dispensed at Boots Old Colwyn, in Conwy, North Wales, after being sent from Cadwgan Surgery via the EPS.
The EPS in Wales launched in Rhyl, North Wales, in November 2023, with Wellington Road Pharmacy and Lakeside Medical Centre in Rhyl the first community pharmacy and GP practice, respectively, to use the service.
The service, which enables prescriptions to be sent electronically from a GP practice to a patient’s choice of pharmacy or dispenser without the need for a paper form, has since been rolled out across Wales in phases throughout 2024.
In September 2021, the Welsh government announced that it aimed to deliver an EPS within three to five years, following England and Scotland, where the service was launched in 2009.
Commenting on the milestone, Jenny Pugh-Jones, EPS lead for DHCW, said: “Passing the 100,000-prescription item mark is a really significant step for electronic prescriptions in Wales.
“Since EPS launched, colleagues in DHCW, primary care, community pharmacies and other stakeholders have worked incredibly hard to start rolling out the service across Wales.
“It’s been exciting to see prescribing and dispensing numbers rise steadily each week, as more GP practices and pharmacies have come on board. I now look forward to building on this progress to benefit more patients and healthcare staff across Wales.”
Geraldine McCaffrey, chair of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s Welsh Pharmacy Board, said: “We are delighted to see the reaching of this milestone as part of the rollout of the EPS. Pharmacy teams have been instrumental in helping ensure a smooth transition as we switch to sending prescriptions electronically to aid safety, efficiency and convenience of prescribing for patients, pharmacists and GPs.
“As the service continues to be rolled out across Wales, we look forward to our pharmacy teams being supported throughout the implementation process. This process is transforming the way prescriptions are managed, and we look forward to seeing further positive impacts on patient care.”
