Fred IT Group has been appointed by the Department of Health to lead the new national system for real-time prescription monitoring (RTPM).
According to a report released by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW), in 2016 there were 1,808 deaths in Australia as a result of prescription medicine overdoses.
The introduction of a national approach to RTPM is expected to play a significant role in preventing prescription-medication misuse.
The system will provide health professionals with accurate and up-to-date clinical data about patient prescriptions, enabling doctors and pharmacists to identify and support patients who are at risk.
Fred IT Group says its recent experience in developing the Victorian RTPM system, SafeScript, will be invaluable in extending RTPM to health professionals in all states and territories.
“I have seen first-hand the anguish that accidental prescription-drug overdose can cause to families who have lost loved ones, and am honoured that Fred can take part in developing eHealth systems to reduce the devastating impact of prescription overdose and misuse throughout the community,” Fred CEO and pharmacist Paul Naismith said.
“Fred IT is committed to making medication management safer and more effective for all Australians, and we applaud the Australian government for taking a national approach to this problem.”
Telstra Health Managing Director Mary Foley said: “A national prescription safety system is a significant development that will save lives.
“Platforms such as this leverage our rapidly digitising healthcare environment to connect healthcare silos and will support providers to improve medication safety in the community.”
Fred IT will design, build and deliver the software system for the National Data Exchange component. This will include working with medical and pharmacy software vendors and jurisdictions to provide a consistent user experience for health professionals practising in different environments and to reflect individual state and territory requirements within the national system.
