Hospital prescription sheets on the wards could become a thing of the past with the launch of a new electronic system.

Two wards at Grimsby hospital are the first at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust to use a new electronic prescribing and medicines administration (ePMA) system.

The innovative computer system supplied by Ascribe has gone live on wards B7 and B6 and will replace handwritten prescription forms. The system will enable medication to be managed electronically from prescribing through to supply and administration.

David Owen, assistant chief pharmacist (business and operations) and ePMA Trust project manager, said: “The aim of the system is to improve the safety and efficiency of healthcare by providing clear and legible prescriptions and assistance in the prescribing process.”

The system, which is scheduled to be rolled out across the Trust over the next 12 months, will provide a direct computerised link between the wards and departments to the pharmacies.

The system will benefit not only medical staff but ultimately patients. The benefits include:

Computer generated prescriptions

Alerts for allergies and drug interactions

Computerised communication between wards and departments to the pharmacy departments providing information and guidance

Simple re-ordering of medication

No more need for paper medication charts

Medicine records will be in one place, visible and accessible at any time wherever staff or patients are in the hospital.

Emma and Tracy, ward B7 staff nurses, commenting on their experiences of medicines rounds working with the system, said “I whizzed through” and “It’s easy. I like it”.

Debbie Carpenter, ward manager B7, said: “This is a very exciting development which sees the prescribing and administration of medicines moving forward into the technological world of the future when all patient records could be paperless.”

David added: “A dedicated team of experts will be rolling out this exciting project which will see prescriptions being ordered electronically for the first time at our three hospitals.”

Paul Thomson, ePrescribing market specialist at Ascribe, said: "We are excited to be a part of the great teamwork at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole hospitals in implementing Ascribe's modern Electronic Prescribing and Medicines Administration support, and seeing the clinical benefits being realised immediately."