Writing Prescriptions in NL

About this Course

Writing a prescription may seem like a simple, routine task in a health professionalÂ’s day to day practice. However, this does not mean that it doesnÂ’t deserve due thought and attention. Not doing so can lead to incomplete, inaccurate, or illegible prescriptions which are major contributors to medication errors.
While medication errors can occur at any stage of the medication use process, prescribing errors - failures in the prescription writing process that result in incorrect or missing information being given for one or more of the normal elements of a prescription - are one of the most common, avoidable medication errors. Evidence has shown that prescription writing education can have a positive effect on this issue.

Learning Objectives

After completing this course, you will be able to:

  1. Explain the importance of accurate prescription writing in error prevention.
  2. Identify legal and regulatory standards for writing prescriptions.
    • List the components of a prescription.
    • Describe the federal and provincial regulations for prescribing Controlled Drugs and Substances.
    • Review proper practices for using a Tamper Resistant Prescription Pad.
  3. Describe the current and emerging technologies related to the provincial electronic health record, electronic medical records, and electronic prescribing.
    • Describe the purpose of the Prescription Monitoring Program.
    • Discuss how using HEALTHe NL, and e-prescribing can improve the accuracy of prescribing medications.
    • Describe the responsibilities of using HEALTHe NL when prescribing Controlled Drugs and Substances.
  4. Discuss the importance of positive relationships between prescribers and dispensers.
    • Describe the roles and responsibilities of prescribers.
    • Explain the roles and responsibilities of dispensers.

This continuing professional development (CPD) program has been designed to consider the CanMEDS - Family Medicine Competency Framework, including the roles of:

  • Family Medicine Expert
  • Communicator
  • Collaborator
  • Health Advocate
  • Professional