eRx in Arizona (EAzRx)
Arizona was recently recognized at the 3rd Annual Safe-Rx™ Awards as having the eighth highest percentage of electronic prescribing (e-Prescribing) in the U.S. Many clinicians - such as Dr. Adler (our top e-Prescriber) and pharmacists have taken the lead in Arizona, by first recognizing the incredible benefits of e-Prescribing, and then implementing the necessary systems to make it happen. You can view statistics on Arizona’s e-Prescribing progress, as tracked by SureScripts, here, or download the pdf at the side of this page.
Even though Arizona is the number eight state in the nation, the entire country has much progress to make. The percentage of possible e-Prescriptions currently being processed was still only 2.89% in Arizona, though it exceeds the national average of 2%.
To build on existing leadership and efforts, move Arizona even further ahead in e-Prescribing, and to use e-Prescribing as a “beachhead” for other Health Information Infrastructure activities, Arizona Health-e Connection (AzHeC), together with health care stakeholders, consumers, and government agencies, is launching an e-Prescribing initiative, EAzRx.
“As the U.S. moves toward a national healthcare information infrastructure (NHII) or nationwide health information network (NHIN), one commonly held notion is that e-prescribing will serve as a beachhead for the advancement of health information technology at the point of care.” Martin R, Electronic Prescribing for the Medical Practice, HIMSS.
AzHeC’s Board established an e-Prescribing Steering Committee to establish and oversee the EAzRx initiative. The Committee is experiencing great leadership under its pharmacy and physician co-chairs: Mindy Rasmussen, Executive Director of the Arizona Pharmacy Alliance; and Dr. Brad Croft, a family practice physician from Flagstaff. After viewing a variety of data on initiatives in other states, gathered by Dr. Terri Warholak of the University of Arizona College of Pharmacy, the Committee established a mission, goals, and strategies, which were also reviewed and approved by the AzHeC Board. A presentation providing greater detail is available for download from this page.
Mission
Arizona Health-e Connection and its EAzRx Steering Committee are committed to enhancing patient safety through increased e-prescribing adoption by clinicians in Arizona. We will use the combined expertise of the EAzRx Steering Committee, Arizona Partnership for Implementing Patient Safety, providers, pharmacists, and other stakeholders to further the initiative.
Goal
To achieve nearly 100% of possible e-prescriptions being e-prescribed by April 2013 (5 years).
Major Strategies
-
Provide umbrella coordination organization (EAzRx Steering Committee)
-
Provide information and statistics in easy-to-access format (time saving for providers)
-
Recognize top e-prescribers in Arizona
-
Coordinate and publish Arizona case studies to educate the provider community
-
Work to identify real incentives and apply for grants to provide “flow-through” funding
-
Improve patient safety and encourage patient involvement in the e-prescribing process
We encourage you to monitor this page for updates, and download additional documents – including our updated list of the top 25 e-Prescribing clinicians in Arizona!
