ARLINGTON, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In 2021, Surescripts delivered its enhanced Medication History services to providers nationwide, with a 21% increase in the use of Medication History during patient intake, hospital admission and transitions in care, as well as a 53% increase in use by providers in population health programs. Surescripts also introduced new features to proactively alert care teams to prescription activities for patients, fill data gaps and remove duplicate medications. These innovations give providers a more complete and accurate view of a patient's medication history, saving providers time and supporting increased medication adherence.
"In an environment when time with patients is a premium, these enhancements simplify collecting a patient's medication history while supplying the most robust record available," explained Tom Skelton, Chief Executive Officer at Surescripts. "Together with our partners across the Surescripts Network Alliance, we're empowering providers by quickly supplying them with the patient information they need so that they can spend their time with patients."
Surescripts filled data gaps in 86% of medication histories delivered with these new features enabled, helping reduce the possibility of adverse drug events and associated readmissions. Surescripts also removed duplicate medications in 62% of medication histories with these new features enabled, helping to turn conversations about a patient's medications from an investigation into a validation.
In 2021, Mount Sinai Health System in New York worked with Surescripts to proactively notify care teams about prescription activities, including when refills are not picked up, when no refills remain, and when a new prescription is processed by a new prescriber. After just five months, Mount Sinai saw a 60% improvement in its percentage days calculated (PDC) rate, which indicates how long a patient has been adherent to their medication.
"Our goals are to improve medication adherence and related patient outcomes as well as reduce readmissions and unnecessary medication spend on the part of plans and patients," said Ruchi Tiwari, Pharm.D., M.S., and executive director of ambulatory pharmacy and population health at Mount Sinai. "With notifications pushed to us, we don't have to have navigation staff sitting with Excel and these different tool sets that are not convenient, time-sensitive or making the best use of their skill sets. It is a lot more efficient."
Surescripts Medication History for Reconciliation arms healthcare professionals with the patient intelligence they need for electronic medication reconciliation, with data supplied by pharmacy benefit managers and pharmacies covering more than 99% of all patients, including information about medications purchased without the benefit of insurance.
Surescripts Medication History for Populations helps health systems, hospitals and accountable care organizations proactively access medication history via their electronic health record or analytics platform to help manage cost-effective care for patient populations.
Visit Surescripts.com to learn more about how Surescripts Medication History solutions deliver the interoperability that providers need.
About Surescripts
Our purpose is to serve the nation through simpler, trusted health intelligence sharing, in order to increase patient safety, lower costs and improve the quality of care. At Surescripts, we align healthcare organizations across the nation and give healthcare professionals the trusted insights they need to serve patients. We convene the Surescripts Network Alliance® to enhance prescribing, better inform care decisions and advance healthcare as a whole. Visit us at surescripts.com and follow us at twitter.com/surescripts.
