Take in a prescription

In short

In Prescriptions, choose New prescription, find (or add) the patient, type the prescriber and the medicines, attach a photo of the prescription, and choose Run Safety Checks.

Who: pharmacists and technicians, while a pharmacist is on duty.

Find the patient

1. Open Prescriptions and choose New prescription.
2. Search Name, phone or patient ID (the full phone number or its last 4 digits), and choose Select. Not there? Choose New Patient (add a patient).

Fill in the prescription

1. Check the patient's allergies and current medicines at the top. For a child with no weight in the last 30 days, type Weight today (kg) and choose Record Weight.
2. Prescriber: type the Prescriber Name, Council and Licence Number as written.
   • Verified: they're on the prescriber list Scepter360 holds.
   • Not on file: check the licence number on the prescription first; a typing mistake is the usual cause. If it's right, a pharmacist checks with the clinic or the MDCN register, then chooses Mark as Confirmed with a note.
3. Date Written, and Refills Allowed if any.
4. Under Prescribed Medication, choose Add medication for each medicine, and fill in Dose, Frequency, Duration and Qty.
5. Take or attach photo of the prescription. It's required for prescription-only medicines and controlled drugs.
6. Add the Prescriber’s Note if there is one.
7. Choose Run Safety Checks.

A pharmacist goes on to the safety checks. A technician goes back to the queue, and the prescription waits there for the pharmacist.

Not finished? Save Draft keeps it. Drafts show at the top of the queue (Continue, or Discard… with a reason).

How long a prescription is valid

Standard medicines: 30 days from the date written. Controlled drugs: 14 days. An expired prescription can be taken in and queued, but not dispensed.

The queue

Prescriptions shows four columns: Waiting, Being prepared, Ready to collect and Collected today. Cards are flagged for things like a severe warning, an allergy, a balance owed, or a photo to check.

If something goes wrong

• "Attach a photo of the prescription to check prescription-only medicines."
• "Record the child’s weight today before the checks run."
• "Confirm the prescriber, or record why you cannot, before the checks run."
• "The date written can’t be in the future."
• "No pharmacist is on duty at this branch. …" A pharmacist needs to sign on.