Ireland’s Systems Solutions merges with Medicom
Systems Solutions, a provider of software systems to the Irish pharmacy sector has announced it is to merge with Medicom, the leading provider of software to the Irish GP sector. The deal will create one of Ireland’s largest health ICT companies. Under the deal Systems Solutions will acquire the majority stake in Medicom. The resulting […]
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Wider engagement with pharmacists could yield benefits
Wider engagement with community pharmacists which could deliver a range of new services with the appropriate IT support and access to electronic records is being ignored by the NHS IT programme in England, according to a pharmacy body. The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain (RPSGB) has told an inquiry into the future of pharmacy […]
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EPS tops 10m prescription mark
More than 10 million electronic prescription messages have now been transmitted using the Electronic Prescription Service (EPS), NHS Connecting for Health (CfH) has announced. Latest figures from CfH show that 10,061,362 messages had been transmitted by 9 January as part of release one of the EPS project which allows pharmacists to scan prescription details into […]
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GPASS accidentally prescribes Viagra to smokers
A glitch with the Scottish GP system GPASS could have resulted in smokers trying to quit the habit being mistakenly prescribed anti-impotence drug Viagra by doctors. NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde Health Board said the error was due to a computer glitch at two city GP practices, according to a report by BBC Scotland. The Health […]
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Pharmacy Manager gets CfH approval for EPS
Cegedim Rx has received authorisation from NHS Connecting for Health to deploy its system Pharmacy Manager for connection to the Electronic Prescription Service (EPS). Simon Driver, managing director of Cegedim Rx, said: “A planned deployment strategy is the next major step towards EPS and this is a significant phase for our company. "As the brand […]
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Pharmacists call for greater say in CRS taskforce
The leading high street pharmacy operators have criticised the exclusion of pharmacists from the government’s NHS Summary Care Record Taskforce and called for pharmacists to have full read-and-write access to the record. The Company Chemists’ Association, which represents the majority of UK multiple pharmacies including Boots, Lloyds and Asda, claim that other healthcare professionals do […]
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MHRA target UK illegal drug websites
The Medicines Healthcare and Regulatory Authority have conducted raids on five UK-based websites thought to be selling unlicensed or prescription-only medicines. Officers from the MHRA visited sites in Colchester, Canterbury, Preston, and Harrow and Hayes in Middlesex and seized computer equipment and substances such as ephedrine, a synthetic derivative of amphetamine often sold as […]
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SMS alerts for prescriptions launched
Irish pharmaceutical software company, Systems Solutions Limited, has incorporated SMS text messages, e-mails and direct mail functionality into its QicScript dispensary system. System Solutions says the software is a first that will allow pharmacists to communicate with their patients easily using their preferred method of communication, choosing between text messages, email or letters. The system […]
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NI to link barcodes on prescriptions to EPRs
The Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety in Northern Ireland has announced it has signed a £6.8m contract with Hewlett Packard to provide it with bar-coded prescriptions in an effort to counter fraud. The new Electronic Prescribing and Eligibility System (EPES) will be rolled out over the next two years. Paper prescriptions will […]
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Talking pill bottles read out their own labels
Pharmacies in Northern California have started to stock talking prescription bottles which aim to help elderly or partially sighted patients by reading out label information at the touch of a button. The bottles, which go by the name ‘Rex’, contain a voice chip, battery and a speaker. When dispensing, the pharmacist inserts the bottle into the recording dock, which connects […]
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