Home Forums Discussions General Discussion Penalty for Custom Prescription Instructions in Rx Writer?

While using Rx Writer in Version 6.3.3 I've noted a new phenomena: a red warning appears when I attempt to use and save customized instructions for standard drug prescription in Rx Writer . The Warning reads in part, "Free Text Items not eligible for interaction checking and will count AGAINST meanful use measures."

For example, In Rx Writer I can pull up Prednisone 10 mg tablets, and fill in my own instructions, Dispens and refills.If I want to later write the identical script for another patient, I must again fill in all these fields manually.

As a work-around for typing the same instructions repeatedly for the same drug, I typically prepare custom instructions for frequently used drugs (ie: for prednisone "Begin six tablets daily, taper down by one tablet each day until finished" ), I then add an annotation to the Script name ( I may name "Prednisone 10mg Tabs" -> "Prednisone 10mg Tab-Six Day Taper") - the title box becomes yellow, and custom Prescription can be re-called up again for future use

Am I interpreting this new warning correctly that the mere act of having customized the instructions on a standard prescription now causes me to be penaliaced in the Meaningful Use checker in Amazing Charts?

Brue Morgenstern, MD (Neurology)
Denver, CO

As far as I know this is occurring because you have renamed name of med and so are not codified. Look to see if name of med ends up being italicized.

When the Rx writer is open, looking on the right side of the chart which lists all current meds, the names of the scripts with the custom SIGs I have created are in italics.

This is true even if I call up a new Rx, remove from the prescription name anything other than the original infomation appearing in the field. So, for example, I may call up my (yellowed) "Prednisone 10mg Tab-Six Day Taper" which contains the detailed prescribing information, then delete out the "-Six Day Taper" part so the script name so it is now identical to the original script name) but it still remains yellowed out and the red warning still remains.

It certainly seems inefficient and time-wasting to repeatedly re-write long directions for frequently used scripts, how does AC suggest, (or other providers actually accomplish) getting around this?

Brue Morgenstern, MD (Neurology)
Denver, CO

This has been a longstanding issue for some providers and you should query AC and ask them. I just retype but I don't use quick scrip either and type English and it doesn't really slow me much. Sorry I can't help.