Saturday, April 26, 2008

Drive-through counter at Penang Hospital soon


Patients with chronic ailments may soon enjoy “drive through” facilities to collect their medication instead of having to wait at government hospital pharmacies.
Health Ministry director-general Tan Sri Dr Ismail Merican said a pilot project would begin at the Penang Hospital in three months to study its feasibility.
“They will not have to come on their work day. They can get their medication after office hours or on weekends,” he said.
He said patients would be able to make a telephone call or send an SMS to the pharmacy ahead of making the collection.
Dr Ismail said “e-prescribing” – the computerisation of medicine prescriptions – had seen a decrease of the number of prescription errors.