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 cont
rolled 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: