The Challenge
Increasing harm from unsafe use of monitored medicines is a major public health concern. In 2020, there were 1,654 unintentional deaths due to drug overdoses in Australia. Of these, 856 (51.7%) were due to pharmaceutical opioids (e.g. codeine, morphine or oxycodone). Benzodiazepines (e.g. diazepam, nitrazepam or alprazolam) are also being increasingly identified in unintentional drug-induced deaths, accounting for 596 deaths (36%)1.
SafeScript NSW assists prescribers and pharmacists to:
- Review their patients’ prescribing and dispensing history for monitored medicines
- Identify patients who are receiving prescriptions for monitored medicines from multiple prescribers, placing them at increased risk of harm
- Consider their patients’ total daily dose of opioids when making decisions about their care
- Identify patients who may be taking harmful combinations of monitored medicines.
The Plan
SafeScript NSW is part of NSW Health’s commitment to reduce harm from monitored medicines and help save lives. It is part of a national real-time prescription monitoring program and is being delivered by eHealth NSW in partnership with the Ministry of Health.
Close consultation with clinicians has been at the heart of SafeScript NSW. We have engaged with general practitioners; community pharmacists; pain management, drug and alcohol specialists; and clinical peak bodies as well as Primary Health Networks and NSW Local Health Districts to better understand their requirements and ensure the system meets their needs.
Consumer representative groups and individuals with lived experience of chronic pain or drug dependence were also consulted through a series of forums. Partnering with Painaustralia and the NSW Users and AIDS Association has helped to ensure consumers’ perspectives are incorporated into the design and rollout of the system.
Hear what health practitioners are saying about SafeScript NSW
The Outcome
SafeScript NSW was rolled out to health practitioners across the state in stages. It was first made available to prescribers and pharmacists in Hunter New England and Central Coast from November 2021. From March 2022, Northern Sydney and Nepean Blue Mountains were able to register. SafeScript NSW was then made available to all remaining eligible health practitioners in NSW in May 2022.
In the 12 months since SafeScript NSW was introduced, more than 22,000 health practitioners have registered (67% of general practitioners and 65% of pharmacists in NSW). In addition, more than 280,000 unique patient records have been viewed by eligible health practitioners.
Authorised officers of the Ministry of Health are also accessing SafeScript NSW as part of their regulatory role in ensuring the safe supply of medicines in the community.
The Benefits
Prescribers and pharmacists using SafeScript NSW have provided positive feedback overall. They found it to be an easy-to-use, helpful clinical tool, and reported a seamless integration with clinical software.
Some of the expected benefits of SafeScript NSW are:
- Increased availability of monitored medicines history to enable more informed clinical decision making
- Decreased harm from non-prescribed use of monitored medicines
- Decreased non-prescribed use of monitored medicines
- Increased regulatory efficiency through availability and use of new regulatory tools.
Data correct as of October 2023