Two companies have been awarded grants to develop electronic prescription services (EPS) for community pharmacies in Wales.
PharmacyX and Titan PMR have received the funding – the detail of which has not been announced – from the Community Pharmacy System Innovation Fund.
This was launched in April and could provide up to £111,000 for each successful applicant to develop systems for pharmacies to use an EPS.
It was set up by Life Sciences Hub Wales and the country’s Digital Medicines Transformation Portfolio.
Sarah Taylor, sector intelligence lead of Life Sciences Wales, said: “We’d like to congratulate PharmacyX and Titan PMR on being awarded funding to help deliver EPS in Wales, and welcome further applications from other digital community pharmacy system suppliers. Digital prescribing has a wide range of benefits for patients, staff and the environment, so we’re looking forward to seeing the future outcomes of this funding opportunity.”
The fund, which is open to UK registered businesses that currently supply pharmacies or have the potential to do so, will remain open for applications until October 2024, although the organisers are reserving the right to close it early.
It involves three tiers: to develop and implement changes to systems to enable EPS in a pharmacy through an assured patient medication record; to allow for paperless processes in community pharmacies; and to be able to send push notifications to the NHS Wales App to advices medicines are ready for collection.