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Comments on Physician Medication Dispensing From Physicians Total Care

Posted on: Monday, 22 October 2007, 15:00 CDT

Talk about your time-wasters: according to a study done by the Institute of Medicine, it costs doctors $5-$7 per call every time they have to handle a pharmaceutical callback. It doesn't sound like much, until it's factored in that physicians write 30 initial prescriptions a day on average, plus another 30 refills.

When all that's added up, that's about $30,000 a year in non-productive overhead that each physician is spending on pharmaceutical calls.

"The fact of the matter is that physicians are already feeling pressure from Medicare and Medicaid budget cuts," said Warren Moseley, president of Physicians Total Care. "Add to that $30,000 a year in unproductive overhead, and you've got quite a problem on your hands. Problems create opportunities."

To help doctors save themselves money and cut prescription costs for their patients, Moseley suggests they turn to physician dispensing.

"Rather than handing your patients a piece of paper that they've got to then take to the pharmacy, where the pharmacist must then decipher it and fill it, patients can get their prescriptions right in your office," said Moseley.

Physician medication dispensing benefits both doctors and patients. Through generic and therapeutic substitutions, the overall cost of medication at the point of care is about 50 percent less than it would be at a retail pharmacy. Retail pharmacy cannot make therapeutic substitutions, a great cost saver.

"Not only is the cost lower, but it's also more convenient," said Moseley. "You can get your medication right there, instead of having to drive across town to the pharmacy."

Another benefit is that patients get better accuracy on their prescriptions. According to the Institute of Safe Medicine Practices, more than 3 million of the 8.8 million adverse drug events that occur each year in ambulatory care are preventable. The Institute also said these errors result from illegible handwriting, unclear abbreviations and doses, unclear telephone or verbal orders, and ambiguous orders.

"The wrong medication could make the difference between someone's life and death," said Moseley. "Those kind of human errors are greatly reduced by using physician dispensing."

Physician dispensing also benefits the physician. That $30,000 in unproductive overhead is now directed to providing medications to the patient -- usually at a much reduced cost in overhead. When physicians distribute the prescriptions, they are able to make a profit on the prescriptions, resulting in an additional revenue source.

"With physician medication dispensing, you're increasing your patient care, reducing your overhead, and adding another stream of revenue to your practice," said Moseley. "It's a win-win situation for everybody."

For more information about physician dispensing, visit Physicians Total Care online at http://www.physicianstotalcare.com.

About PTC

PTC has repackaged and distributed pharmaceuticals since 1986. Based in Tulsa, Okla., PTC maintains DEA, FDA and state pharmaceutical licenses in 25 states (and growing). PTC developed the PTC9000 Medication Management System(R) dispensing software for use in all point-of-care environments -- from a solo practice to the largest and most sophisticated multi-site clinic. The software is maintained at state of the art levels for all PTC9000 users at no additional charge. Since 2000, regional and national media attention has resulted in PTC's rapid growth and many more satisfied patients and physicians. In late 2006, PTC moved into a new facility increasing operating capacity more than five times.

 Contact Audra Dudenhoeffer Consultant - Prospective Accounts Physicians Total Care 918-254-2273 Email Contactwww.physicianstotalcare.com

SOURCE: Physicians Total Care

Source: MARKET WIRE

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