The following is issued on behalf of the Hospital Authority:
The Hospital Authority (HA) launched the Drug Refill Services E-Fill pilot programme at Prince of Wales Hospital (PWH) and Tuen Mun Hospital (TMH) in December 2017. Under the programme, patients' prescriptions are split into smaller and manageable quantities, while pharmacists review and reaffirm the latest condition of the patients before each refill. Phase two of the pilot programme will be rolled out at Pamela Youde Nethersole Eastern Hospital (PYNEH) starting from today (December 27).
Medical Specialist Out-patient Clinic (SOPC) patients of PYNEH aged 60 or above who are typically prescribed with drug items for an extended period, such as over 16 weeks until the next consultation, will join the second phase of the pilot programme. These patients will be informed and given prescription slips with refill schedules during their upcoming SOPC consultation sessions. Reminders via telephone calls or short message service (SMS) will be sent to patients three to five days prior to the scheduled refill date. Patients or their carers can collect refill medications using the "Refill Prescription Coupons" at designated counters of the hospital's 24-hour pharmacy department.
Special telephone or face-to-face counselling sessions will be arranged by pharmacists for patients with complex situations, such as hospital readmission, cross-specialty consultations or when there is a need to adjust the prescriptions.
"The first phase of the Drug Refill Services E-Fill pilot programme was implemented in PWH and TMH about one year ago. Around 20 000 patients were covered by the programme and feedback was generally positive. By adjusting the prescriptions for patients, wastage due to surplus drug can be reduced, besides preventing confusion due to overstocking of drugs. It is estimated that the second phase of the pilot programme could cover 5 000 patients," said the HA Chief Pharmacist, Ms Anna Lee.
The HA will continue to improve the operation workflow of E-Fill and roll out the programme to more public hospitals. The implementation of E-Fill is aimed at enhancing high-risk patients' drug compliance and safety, minimising the possibility of confusion and inappropriate use of drugs, and avoiding the storage of excess quantities of drugs.
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