DrFirst Launches California’s First-ever Integrated Technology to Tackle the Opioid Epidemic Across the Healthcare Continuum

Solution enables easy access to state database via MEDITECH EHR to identify opioid ‘doctor shopping’ and reduce overall drug abuse

ROCKVILLE, MD — February 7, 2019 — DrFirst, the nation’s leading provider of e-prescribing and patient medication management solutions, announced today the availability of an integrated solution with the MEDITECH Enterprise Health Record (EHR) that seamlessly connects prescribers to California’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program (PDMP). For the first time ever, in-workflow access to the PDMP, known as Controlled Substance Utilization Review and Evaluation System (CURES 2.0) is available to MEDITECH and DrFirst mutual customers using the MEDITECH Acute, Ambulatory, and ED solutions in the 6.15 or Expanse platforms.

This new CURES 2.0 integration is critical because it gives clinicians streamlined, real-time access to essential opioid prescription information for individual patients at the point-of-care. Prescribers using DrFirst’s e-prescribing tools within the MEDITECH EHR can quickly check the CURES 2.0 database to view their patients’ opioid prescription history, allowing them to quickly identify patients who may have substance abuse disorders and are “doctor shopping” for prescriptions of controlled substances.

Prescribers do not need to log into CURES 2.0 from a separate browser because patient queries are initiated from within the e-prescribing workflow. Prescription records are returned directly within the EHR automatically once physician credentials are validated in the state’s PDMP.

“As the first vendors to offer acute care providers access to CURES 2.0 within e-prescribing workflows, DrFirst and MEDITECH are demonstrating our strong commitment to tackling the country’s opioid crisis, as well as our leadership in the development of innovative solutions that advance patient safety and empower physicians,” said G. Cameron Deemer, President of DrFirst. “We value our close relationship with MEDITECH; our teams share a passion for delivering technology solutions that improve patient care, increase physician efficiencies and help prescribers make clinically sound medication management decisions.”

DrFirst and MEDITECH are long-time collaborators with a history of initiatives that advance e-prescribing and medication management for MEDITECH EHR clients. In addition to this critical work in California, DrFirst and MEDITECH offer similar integrations with PDMPs in 37 other states across the country. MEDITECH EHR customer Salinas Valley Memorial Health System is the first hospital scheduled to go live with the integrated CURES 2.0 solution.

“Physicians want to do what’s best for their patients and, as technology providers, we have the privilege of helping them deliver care more safely and efficiently,” said Howard Messing, President and CEO of MEDITECH. “We are confident that, by giving physicians ready-access to in-depth details of patients’ past prescriptions through the integration between MEDITECH and the CURES 2.0 PDMP, physicians will be able to make a meaningful difference in addressing California’s opioid crisis.”

“The integration between MEDITECH and the state’s PDMP will give our physicians an efficient solution that will ensure the utmost safety when prescribing controlled substances through the DrFirst e-prescribing interface,” said David Kasting, MD, CMIO for Salinas Valley Memorial Health System. “We look forward to bringing this solution to our providers and taking our next step to continually ensure the safety of all of our patients, including those who may be in need of substance abuse treatment.”

The CURES 2.0 database includes prescriptions of Schedule II, III and IV controlled substances dispensed in California. As of October 2, 2018, with specified exceptions, health care practitioners authorized to prescribe, order, administer, or furnish a controlled substance were required by California law to consult the CURES database. Practitioners must review a patient’s controlled substance history before prescribing Schedule II, III and IV drugs to a patient for the first time, and at least once every four months after that if the substance remains part of the treatment of the patient. In 2016, over 2,000 individuals died from opioid-related overdoses in California and more than 42,000 across the country.

About MEDITECH
Five decades. One EHR. No limits. More than ever, MEDITECH’s reputation for excellence resounds across every care setting. As we celebrate 50 bold years of vision and innovation, we invite you to see healthcare through a whole new lens with Expanse, the premier EHR for the digital healthcare paradigm. Our cutting-edge solutions help organizations and providers all over the world to take on the challenges of healthcare’s ever-expanding landscape. Whether your destination is clinical efficiency, analytical prowess, a superior patient and consumer experience, or financial success, MEDITECH’s passion and expertise will get you where you want to go. Visit ehr.meditech.com, our Newsroom and Blog, and connect with us on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn to start your journey today.  

About DrFirst
DrFirst, the nation’s leading provider of e-prescribing and medication management solutions, enables stakeholders across the healthcare industry to use comprehensive real-time data and connectivity to increase their patient safety ratings, efficiency, and profitability. Today, more than 170,000 healthcare professionals and more than 60% of electronic health record (EHR) vendors depend on DrFirst’s innovative software solutions to improve clinical workflows, expedite secure collaboration across a patient’s care team and drive better health outcomes. The company’s integrated technologies include its award-winning electronic prescribing platform, the most comprehensive medication history available, clinically specialized secure messaging, and patient medication adherence monitoring and benefits checking. In addition, DrFirst was the first to offer e-prescribing for controlled substances (EPCS) and is considered the industry standard for providers nationwide. For more information, please visit www.drfirst.com or connect with us @DrFirst.

DrFirst Media Contact:
Lisa Chernikoff
Amendola Communications
734-678-5513
[email protected] 

MEDITECH Media Contacts:
Paul Berthiaume
Senior Manager, Marketing Communications
MEDITECH
781-774-5742
[email protected]

Liz Carroll
Manager, Public Relations and Media Relations
MEDITECH
781-774-3297
[email protected]