Table 2.

Signature exempt e-prescribing during Covid-19 [7]

During Covid-19 it was possible to send e-prescriptions to a pharmacy in the two ways described below. The patient did not necessarily require a consultation with the prescriber before an e-prescription was issued; repeat prescriptions could also be processed in this way. However generated, all signature exempt prescriptions are directly linked back to the prescriber by the presence of the prescriber’s name and their New Zealand Medical Council number on the prescription

Using the New Zealand electronic Prescribing System (NZePS)

NZePS is a secure messaging channel that enables prescriptions to be generated and transmitted to a pharmacy electronically, similar to systems in the United Kingdom (UK) [15, 16] and Australia [17]. Using NZePS is expected to improve communication between practices and pharmacies, allow the prescriber to see the status of the prescription (dispensed, cancelled, repeats remaining) and also what has previously been prescribed [18]. All community pharmacies have had access to the NZePS system since 2016 but not all general practices, as access was only available through some (albeit commonly used) practice management systems (PMSs). In addition, activation incurred an additional cost to some practices, depending on their PMS [18]

Without NZePS

During Covid-19 a temporary waiver was issued by the Director General of Health to enable non-NZePS signature exempt prescriptions providing certain criteria are met, including transmission using a defined “secure” electronic system and that the prescription is in a form that is hard to change for anyone other than the original prescriber (e.g., a PDF or photograph). This waiver has recently been extended to 21st June 2021 [13]