What should the pharmacy technician do if they are unable to read the handwriting on a prescription?

Specifically whenever a handwritten prescription is at all unclear, the prescriber should be contacted to ensure accuracy and the clarified details should be recorded right away.

Why do doctors write prescriptions in bad handwriting?

The most common reason for illegible handwriting is the large number of patients to be seen, notes to be written and prescriptions given, in a short time. It should also be accepted that poor handwriting has no correlation with the medical acumen or expertise of a doctor.

What do you do if you Cannot read a prescription clearly?

If you think there is an error, you can tell the pharmacist or call your healthcare provider. If you do not understand what your prescription says, ask for help. Your healthcare provider or another healthcare provider in the office can answer your questions. This could help you detect and prevent an error.

What would you do if you Cannot read the prescription?

If the pharmacist is unable to read a prescription, they are required by law to contact your doctors office and confirm the information first. Handwritten prescriptions are not as common these days due to the popularity of electronic prescriptions, but they still do exist and need to be deciphered by the pharmacist.

How common are medication errors from difficult reading prescriptions?

Introduction. Preventable medication errors affect more than 1.5 million Americans annually. These errors are caused by unclear abbreviations and doses, and illegible handwriting. Therefore a plea has been made for doctors to use digital notes and prescriptions to prevent these errors.

How do doctors read prescriptions?

What makes a Prescription Valid?

1. Name, qualification, address and registration number of the doctor.
2. Name, age and gender of the patient.
3. Date of consultation.
4. Name of the Medication prescribed.
5. Directions for use including dosage, frequency and duration.
6. Doctor’s signature and stamp.