How does the emergency Rx history service benefit patients?
Emergency Rx History will ultimately allow individuals who have been displaced by natural disasters or other kinds of emergencies to receive faster, safer access to life-saving prescription medications. The clinical value of electronic medication records was never illustrated more clearly than in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Many Katrina evacuees who took prescription medications before the hurricane were displaced with no medications and no access to their medical records, most of which were paper-based and either destroyed or unavailable. This created yet another threatening situation for patients already at risk from the disaster itself, especially those who relied on prescription medications to treat chronic illness. Rx History was first tested as part of a response by community pharmacies and other healthcare leaders to help Hurricane Katrina victims who needed medications, but often had no prescription information.
