Prescription Drug Monitoring Program to Combat Opioid/ Heroin Abuse: Available August 25th in SmartChart

The State of Pennsylvania has enacted an on-line prescription drug monitoring database to help physicians identify patients who may be abusing scheduled prescription medications:

• All providers who write for controlled substances are required by law to check the database for a patient the first time the patient is prescribed a controlled substance by that provider or if a prescriber believes that a patient may be abusing or diverting drugs.

• Outpatient pharmacists have been using this system since June 24th and are required to enter all filled prescriptions for scheduled medications into the database.

• The system helps to identify patients who may be abusing prescription medications.

• On-line training for physicians and their designees is available on the Pennsylvania Department of Health website.

• For MLH hospital physicians; a link has been added to SmartChart “links” (see photo.)

• Further information about this new process will be forthcoming.

To register, copy and open this link into a new web-browser:

http://www.health.pa.gov/Your-Department-of-Health/Offices%20and%20Bureaus/PaPrescriptionDrugMonitoringProgram/Pages/Prescribers.aspx#.V7TT853D9aR