Practice pharmacist-led intervention to flag hazardous prescribing

A new partnership between the University of Nottingham and First Databank (FDB) will now help thousands of primary care prescribers to avoid hazardous prescribing.

The partnership will enable the university’s pharmacist-led information technology intervention (PINCER) interventions through FDB’s prescribing decision support tool OptimiseRx either at point of prescription or reauthorising of medications when PINCER safety indicators are relevant for specific patients.

This is part of the ongoing national roll-out of the PINCER prescribing safety indicators.

The PINCER intervention uses the principles of root cause analysis to identify patients at risk of hazardous prescribing.

A pharmacist then works with the practice to draw up action plans to address any immediate risk, and changes to system and process required to prevent any error from recurring.

Two-thirds of Clinical Commissioning Groups, who are already using the OptimiseRx technology medicine management system, will now alert GPs and other primary care prescribers, either at point of prescription or reauthorising of medications, when PINCER safety indicators are relevant for specific patients.

Kerry Oliver, managing director of PRIMIS, said: “The agreement to embed the PINCER indicators in OptimiseRx provides enormous reach for what will be of vital benefit to key prescribing decisions within thousands of practices throughout England.

“Including them in such a widely used medicines management system will be an important factor for the sustainability of the PINCER indicators, emphasising their role in evolving knowledge and processes that help to prevent medication errors from recurring.”

FDB is one of the first delivery partners to implement the PINCER Prescribing Safety Indicators through a software solution.

Darren Nichols, UK managing director at FDB, said: “We have listened to clinical commissioners and prescribers across the country who see the inclusion of the latest PINCER indicators within OptimiseRx as an important component of their adoption of national policies for helping to safeguard patients.

“Every day thousands of GP practices already draw on alerts within the technology to help them make the best prescribing decisions for patients, with primary care professionals prompted when best practice might indicate there could be better alternatives for patients. This important upgrade to the system with additional indicators will make those prompts even more comprehensive.”