Like many healthcare organizations, Hartford HealthCare was dealing with the inefficiencies that came with prescribing controlled substances on paper. In June 2017, as Hartford HealthCare considered possible options for improving its prescribing workflows, the state of Connecticut passed a new law that would deliver a solution—mandatory electronic prescribing for controlled substances (EPCS).
Moving to EPCS would ultimately deliver a single, electronic prescribing workflow for all medications and address the challenges of paper prescriptions. However, the DEA requirements for EPCS are unique and complex, and rolling out a fully compliant EPCS solution across a large organization is daunting.
One of the key decisions Hartford HealthCare made was to select a technology that could not only meet the two-factor authentication requirement for EPCS, but also ensure full compliance with the DEA requirements to establish a secure, auditable chain of trust. By doing so, Hartford HealthCare was able to:
- Improve workflow efficiency, increase provider and patient satisfaction, and decrease the risk of drug diversion and fraud
- Enable swift EPCS adoption through a comprehensive solution that delivered a fast, secure e-prescribing workflow for providers
- Implement a full-scale EPCS solution well ahead of state-imposed deadline
