Damn it Brian, sometimes we are as different as President Bush and Hilary Clinton: (these are just my experiences -- not any criticism -- just interesting)
I had considered faxing my prescriptions to the pharmacy, as some have suggested, but I think of the times (all too often) when I hand people their prescription, and there is something wrong with it (my fault or their fault). If I faxed the prescription, the error would not be discovered until it was too late.
That seems to happen with Concerta but rarely with the others. I almsot never hear back from patients on faxed scripts.
I like printing off a nice legible prescription from Amazing Charts, handing it to people and allowing them to review the prescription before they leave. This gives them plenty of time to remember an allergy that they forgot about, or some nuance of their prescription plan.
OK, well maybe. I have already done the quote on this one.
Also, people often tell me they want their prescription sent to one pharmacy, and then go to another. I then get an angry phone call from the patient, wondering where their prescription is! I tell them I faxed it to ABC pharmacy, and they tell me they want it sent to XYZ pharmacy.
OK, I have been faxing scripts directly from the PC for three years now. And, not ONCE has anyone gone to the wrong drug store. Now, the only thing that DOES happen is the pharmacy will call to say I need to do an ACTUAL REAL LIFE signature for Vicodin or T3, and I will get on the phone with the patient and ask them to trek over to a real drug store like Miller Drug. Again, just my experience. The more the better, right?
I would rather just hand them the prescription, and let them carry it where ever they want.
In summation, I feel like sending people out the door with a printed prescription is actually safer in many ways, and it saves me calls from the pharmacy.
