ATTN: PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND NEWS/HEALTH EDITORS
PEI leading Canada in implementing drug information systems

Friendly Pharmacy in Charlottetown made health care history in March of 2008, when it became the first drugstore in the province to go online with the now fully operational province-wide Drug Information System (DIS). With a DIS in every community pharmacy, all drugs dispensed in the province are automatically entered into the DIS database. That means all authorized PEI pharmacies have access to the drug history of every Island resident who needs to have a prescription filled. As a result, PEI's 140,000 residents will benefit from greater patient safety, convenience, efficiency and cost-effectiveness when they get a prescription filled in their province.

The Island's DIS will allow electronic prescribing, rendering traditional handwritten prescriptions obsolete. And health care providers will be able to check for contraindications when a prescription is being filled. Furthermore, because PEI's pharmacists have access to a patient's complete medication profile, there’s much less likelihood of adverse drug reactions.

Similar drug systems are being implemented across Canada thanks to partnerships forged by Canada Health Infoway (Infoway) with the provinces. And Richard Alvarez, President and CEO of Infoway says this country can be proud of the progress. "Thanks to the collaboration between Infoway and the jurisdictions, drug information systems are making a difference to patient care by providing the information needed by pharmacists and doctors alike, to deliver appropriate, accurate prescribing and dispensing."

The federal government, through Infoway, has invested $2 million in DIS projects in PEI. You can learn more about the progress of electronic health record systems from Infoway’s Annual Report at www.infoway-inforoute.ca.

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For more information contact:

Dan Strasbourg
Canada Health Infoway
416.595.3424
dstrasbourg@infoway-inforoute.ca