eCare Plan set to improve doctor/pharmacist relationship

(HealthDay)—The Pharmacist eCare Plan is designed to improve communication between pharmacists and physicians by allowing documentation to be available via electronic health records (EHRs), according to an article published online in Drug Topics.

David Pope, Pharm.D., chief of innovation and cofounder of STRAND Clinical Technologies, addresses the importance of breaking down the traditional barriers to exchanging data between physicians and pharmacists. The Pharmacist eCare Plan, which is designed to improve communication between pharmacists and physicians, has recently entered the market and is receiving steady adoption.

The project, spearheaded by the Pharmacy HIT Collaborative, will allow pharmacists to update the eCare Plan with details relating to a patient's current medications regimen and health concerns, as well as the pharmacy's interventions and the patient's health outcomes. This information can be received and consumed by an EHR and used by the health care team. The plan leverages the current clinical documentation system of the pharmacist to communicate clinical data. The document is written in a common language and format, known as HL7, and must be structured into a specific template allowing any EHR to read it.

"Due to the new ability to share data with other health care providers, this technology has kickstarted a revolution in the community pharmacy industry, encouraging pharmacists across the country to engage their patients with clinical opportunities, then document clinical findings in a usable way," Pope writes.

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