Gematik webinar: "The EPA worked best in pharmacies"

The EPR pilot phase began in January in the model regions of Hamburg, Franconia, and North Rhine-Westphalia. Initially, the new records were tested only there, but the nationwide rollout began on April 29. The EPR is gradually being adopted in healthcare settings, and its use will become mandatory for practices and pharmacies in October.

Experiences to date were discussed on Thursday during a webinar hosted by Gematik. Jan-Niklas Francke (board member of the German Pharmacists Association), Sabine Haul (pharmacist), Lena Dimde (Gematik), and Brenya Adjei (Managing Director of Gematik) were invited to participate. Gematik press spokesperson Martin Schmalz moderated the event.

"In the model regions, the EPA worked best in pharmacies," reported Brenya Adjei. The EPA and the medication lists it contains quickly led to improved patient counseling and protection. She is receiving a lot of positive feedback from pharmacists. "The feedback from pharmacies has already helped us improve the EPA," said the Gematik Managing Director.

Jan-Niklas Francke also emphasized the positive role of pharmacies. "Patients and pharmacies now have information they didn't have before. And they handle this information with great care," Francke explained. To ensure all pharmacists can take advantage of these benefits, the EPR must be further tested and well integrated into pharmacy management systems.

Pharmacist Sabine Haul has had mostly positive experiences with digital records in her work so far and reported a significant reduction in her daily workload. "Now we can look up things that we previously had to laboriously research. If a patient comes to me and says their tablets looked different last time, I can now simply look it up," the licensed pharmacist reported.

However, according to Sabine Haul, there is still a lot of uncertainty among the population. In her conversations with patients, she repeatedly encounters rejection and ignorance. "We should encourage patients and illustrate the purpose of the EPA to them. We should explain why it will improve their personal health and safety and alleviate their fears," said the pharmacist.