The impact of COVID-19 on electronic repeat dispensing (eRD) in general practice

BackgroundElectronic repeat dispensing (eRD) has been part of the community pharmacy contact since 2005 and a requirement in the General Medical Services contract since 2019. NHS England highlights benefits of eRD as increased efficiency in general practice of 2.7 million hours annually if 80% of all repeat prescriptions are issued as eRD. Despite clear benefits to patients, community pharmacies and general practices, the uptake of eRD remains low and variable across general practices in West Yorkshire, UK.ObjectivesTo investigate the impact of COVID-19 on eRD in general practice and understand the key enablers to its uptake.MethodsA 19-item questionnaire was developed and piloted during cognitive interviews. A cross-sectional survey was conducted via emails to general practices in West Yorkshire, UK, between July 2020 and November 2020.ResultsSixty-seven complete responses were received (23 pharmacists, 21 practice managers, 11 general practitioners, seven pharmacy technicians, four advanced practitioners, one prescription clerk). 59% of respondents were aware of eRD uptake in their surgery (mean value 4.56% +/- 0.229%). Higher uptake of eRD was demonstrated where the general practice integrated eRD into routine workflows during the repeat prescription reauthorisation process (P < 0.001) and where an eRD service lead is nominated (P = 0.04).ConclusionUtilising eRD in the respective practices should be considered due to potential efficiency gains and the increase in average eRD utilisation observed in the study participating general practices was from 7.2% average uptake in March 2020 to 10.4% November 2020, as the response to COVID-19. The stated benefits of eRD by NHS England of 2.7 million hours per annum predates the roll out of electronic transmission of prescriptions suggesting further research is needed to quantify the efficiency gains in present NHS general practice environments.

Automated summary

This study investigated the impact of COVID-19 on the uptake of electronic repeat dispensing (eRD) in general practice and identified key factors that promote its adoption. The results showed that integrating eRD into the repeat prescription reauthorization process and appointing an eRD service lead can increase its uptake. The study also found that the average eRD utilization in participating general practices increased from 7.2% in March 2020 to 10.4% in November 2020, as a response to COVID-19. This indicates the potential benefits of using eRD in clinical practice.