Michael Oswald, Head of Pharmacy Services, Community Pharmacy Scotland
COMMUNITY Pharmacy Scotland (CPS) checks 100,000 prescriptions items every month for contractors to check for payment accuracy, Michael Oswald, Head of Pharmacy Services at CPS, told attendees at the National Pharmacy Association (NPA) conference in Glasgow.
He explained that the image of the prescription wasn’t the default that Practitioner Services Division (PSD) used anymore to calculate the payment due to contractors; it was the electronic information, so any paper endorsements such as handling and delivery charges for example also had to be on the electronic endorsement message too, or they wouldn’t be paid.
Likewise, for instalment dispensing, the electronic message also had to contain the appropriate information.
He also reminded the audience that the product chosen when dispensing was what was sent as the electronic claim message, it wasn’t simply about producing a label, and that claims could be amended while you still retained the paper and it hadn’t yet been processed by PSD — there was no time limit on making changes to the electronic claim before this point.
If the pharmacist had dispensed something other than what was on the form (for example a different quantity, form or strength) it had to be endorsed with PC or PMR electronically, as well as on the paper.
However, while in the vast majority of cases the paper would never be looked at, it was still important to endorse the paper for all prescriptions, as there was a risk that if the bar code could not be read then the paper would be looked at, and therefore the handwritten endorsement would be required.
CPS has a useful endorsing guide which you can find on their website.
Watch out for our endorsing guide quiz next Sunday!