Pharmacy Update
Dave Calley
Director of Pharmacy
Prescription Pads at West Valley
Recently, the DEA cited a Utah facility for not controlling prescription pads. An employee was stealing prescription pads and writing falsified prescriptions. The facility was forced to pay a 7-figure fine.
The providers at WV utilize electronic prescribing a majority of the time. We thank you for that and encourage continued utilization. We understand that there is still a need for an occasional hand-written prescription. At this time, we propose the following:
- All individual provider prescription pads be removed from the facility starting May 1st
- Providers are welcome to carry their own personal prescription pads with them to be used on their patients
- West Valley will provide a standard non-reproducible prescription sheet that can be used. Providers will need to write down their DEA number on each prescription.
- Each standard prescription sheet will be counted and tracked by the facility
- If a prescription sheet is needed, the nurse on each unit can access the Pyxis machine to provide a blank prescription
- West Valley will provide generic forms on each unit to order DME or other non-prescriptive services
We understand that this may be an inconvenience. The benefit of protecting our patients, the facility, and ultimately the providers is of greater importance.
Please reach out to either myself, Betsy, or Dr. Augustus with any question or concerns. Thank you so much for your continued attention to avert drug diversion.