Effects of electronic prescribing on the clinical practice of a family medicine residency.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Electronic prescribing is one of the components of the Patient-centered Medical Home and is one of the "meaningful use" criteria to qualify electronic medical records for financial incentives. While there are many potential benefits of electronic prescribing, documentation of these is currently sparse. The purpose of this study was to measure practice improvement as a result of the implementation of electronic prescribing. METHODS Using telephone logs, the number and nature of after-hours calls were reviewed before, immediately after, and 1 year after the initiation of electronic prescribing. Patient and provider satisfaction studies were also conducted. RESULTS One year after the onset of electronic prescribing the overall rate of after-hours calls was reduced by 22% from baseline, significant at P< or =.05, though calls related to medications were significantly increased. Both provider and patient satisfaction with electronic prescribing was very high. CONCLUSIONS Electronic prescribing was positively received by patients and providers and resulted in a reduction in total after-hours calls, despite a paradoxical increase in medication-related calls. Further study is warranted to document other evidence-based outcomes of electronic prescribing.