104 Changing to electronic prescribing in the community at a charitable hospice

<h3></h3> Electronic prescribing, direct from a clinician’s computer to a pharmacy via the NHS spine, has come a long way since it started in 2005. It’s now the standard for GPs in Primary Care, accounting for 95% of all prescriptions but other community services have been slower to make use of the Electronic Prescription Service (EPS) and, despite the many advantages, community palliative care teams have continued to rely on issuing paper FP10s or asking the patient’s GP to issue prescriptions often for complex controlled drugs. In November 2022, the community team at the Phyllis Tuckwell Hospice in Farnham began using EPS. This report looks at the changes in prescribing since EPS was introduced, comparing six months of community prescribing prior to EPS introduction (i.e. use of paper FP10’s) with 6 months of prescribing after its introduction. The results show a significant increase in prescriptions issued by over 145% in the post EPS roll out period and an increased breadth of prescribing with EPS. In addition to quantitative data, qualitative feedback about the service was obtained from the prescribers. The prescribers felt there were clear advantages to electronic prescribing, including improved accuracy of drug names and doses, speed and efficiency and a clear record of the prescription. It was enthusiastically implemented and both the quantitative and qualitative results reflect the many benefits at patient and organisational level for the hospice and wider NHS.