Providing medical services through the web can be very convenient, but not without risks. Here are some tips from MDA National on how to be safe while doing business online…
Most doctors in Australia are familiar with electronic prescribing, which is a convenient way to manage a patient’s medications, but the practice usually involves a face-face or real-time video or phone consultation.
Now, some doctors are going a step further and using the web for a range of medical services, like providing prescriptions, referrals or medical certificates to patients previously unknown to them – all done online.
However, according to MDA National, doctors should be aware of these key points:
- Your indemnity provider may not automatically cover web-based practice, and may require specific details from you to assess whether cover will be provided.
- The RACGP does not support this model of care.
- Online prescribing is not consistent with the NPS prescribing competencies or the AMA’s 10 minimum standards for safe prescribing.
According to the RACGP, providing patients with prescriptions, referrals and/or medical certificates online could risk their safety, as doctors may not have sufficient understanding of the patient’s medical history and social context. In addition, relying on the web only removes the opportunity for physical examination of the patient.
In a recent report, MDA National highlights some of the risk of web-based medicine, which include:
- fragmented patient care
- insufficient understanding of the patient’s medical history and social context
- absence of physical examination increases the risk of missed or delayed diagnosis
- no ability to advise the patient about taking medicines safely and effectively
- lack of opportunity to review the outcomes of treatment
- limited contact points for patients experiencing adverse events or with questions, and poor complaints handling processes
- difficulty verifying patient identity and details such as location and age
- data security.
The risks are very real. In one case, a GP who wrote scripts for sildenafil and other medications through an online service ended up with conditions placed on his registration. Read about this case here.
Content for this story was sourced from MDA National. Read the original story here.