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New PPA Services
“New IT enabled functions provided by the PPA.”
Pharmacist Supplementary Prescribing Information
Pharmacist supplementary prescribers are expected to start prescribing by the end of 2003. Information relating to supplementary prescribing by pharmacists will be available from the following PPA information systems:
- ePACT.net
- PACT Standard Report
- PACT Catalogue.
Controlled Drugs – Supplementary Prescribers
The Home Office has issued a consultation document, which considers prescribing of controlled drugs (including those for instalment dispensing) by supplementary prescribers (nurses and pharmacists). The PPA will be addressing the systems and reporting processes to cater for this prescribing from April 2004.
Repeat Dispensing – Nurses and Supplementary Prescribers
Following the introduction of repeat dispensing in a number of pathfinder sites for English GP prescribers and English pharmacy dispensers, the Department of Health has decided to extend the scheme to all nurses and supplementary prescribers from April 2004.
The PPA are implementing the appropriate changes to cater for this.
GMS Contract – Practice List Sizes
On 20 June 2003 GPs accepted a new contract for general medical services (GMS). All PCTs need to prepare for the full introduction of the new contract from 1 April 2004.
The new GMS contract will be a contract between the local primary care organisation (PCO) and, subject to legislation, the primary care practice, as opposed to a contract with an individual General Practitioner (GP). The GMS contract will affect GPs in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
As part of the GMS contract, individual GP patient lists will cease and there will be a pooled list for the practice. Patients will belong to a practice but not a GP. List size data will therefore only be available at practice level from April dispensed data. The PPA is currently analysing the impact that this will have on PPA systems.
The following systems and reports will be affected by the change to list size data:
- ePACT.net
- Prescribing Dispensing and Financial Management Services (PDFM – electronic PD2 report)
- PD2 (paper report)
- PACT Standard
- PACT Catalogue.
The PPA is undertaking a communications exercise to ensure that all organisations affected by this change are informed in advance of any changes to list size data.
Non Principal GPs
Currently some prescribing of non-principals (e.g. locums, deputising services and trainee GPs) is identified by the use of spurious doctor codes, the remainder however, is not readily identifiable, although it is correctly attributed to a patient’s practice.
With the introduction of the new GMS contract in April 2004 there is likely to be an increase in the number of non-principal GPs and greater flexibility for GPs in their working patterns. The PPA are looking at options which will report prescribing information by individual non-principal GPs whilst continuing to correctly attribute the prescribing costs to the practice of the patient.
October Release of ePACT.net
The October 2003 release of the service includes additional facilities:
- Prescribing by pharmacist supplementary prescribers
- Analysis of repeat dispensing
- Identification of prescribing by Out Of Hours Care centres
- Information on dispensing under Local Pharmaceutical Services contracts
- Pre-defined BNF tags for controlled drugs.
New Pharmacy Contract
Over the coming months, the PPA will monitor closely the outcome of discussions on the pharmacy vision and new pharmacy contract in order to bring in new services to support the pharmacy contract.
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