Antibiotics Will Not Be Sold Without Electronic Prescriptions, Artak Jumayan

In the Republic, a mandatory requirement will be established for the electronic prescription of certain medications, with antibiotics being the first on the list.

During a press conference, the Deputy Minister of Health Artak Jumayan stated that this will allow for complete control over the process. “If there is no electronic prescription, the pharmacy will not have the right to sell antibiotics. The requirement to not sell antibiotics without a prescription already exists today, albeit in paper form; however, in practice, we have seen that the process lacks sufficient oversight. It will be easier to exercise control with the electronic version. I believe we will achieve a higher level of oversight and prompt response to any violations. If there are operators and doctors who violate this by selling antibiotics without an electronic prescription, we will detect this through another toolkit that we are also implementing. This refers to the introduction of the electronic version of the outpatient record. If a diagnosis is made there, but a prescription is issued in paper form, then the responsible party in the treatment line will see and address the violation,” said the Deputy Minister.

Continuing the topic of reforms, Jumayan announced that they are moving to the next phase of implementing the electronic prescription system. Specifically, prescriptions will be issued electronically for patients with security units and those with disabilities. A pilot version has already been implemented in a polyclinic in Yerevan, at the St. Grigor Lusavorich Medical Center. During this time, all adjustments will be made so that the complete product can be implemented in other polyclinics. The next step is defining several medications whose prescriptions must be issued electronically.