Drug Profile Viewer

The Drug Profile Viewer (DPV) System is a secure, Internet-based application that provides authorized health care providers across the province with prescription drug claims information of 2.5 million Ontario Drug Benefit (ODB) and Trillium Drug Program (TDP) recipients.

The Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care (MOHLTC) has made this information available to authorized health care providers for the purpose of providing care.

Since 2005, Ontario hospitals have been successfully using the DPV System. The recognized value of this information in hospitals has led to requests for access to the DPV System by providers outside of hospital settings. As part of the government's provincial strategy to improve patient care, safety and access, eHealth Ontario is exploring ways to effectively bring prescription drug information to health care providers throughout the health care sector. The DPV System is a key step toward the future, province-wide electronic Medication Management System (MMS) which will provide comprehensive prescription drug histories for all Ontarians, as well as clinical and decision support tools for health care providers. Medication management is one of eHealth Ontario's clinical priorities over the next three years.

The ODB Program provides coverage to eligible recipients for more than 3,300 drug products. The DPV System is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and includes the following key components:

• Web-enabled application that:
  • May be deployed to health care organizations that are connected to the eHealth Ontario secure network
  • Provides health care providers with the ability to view and print an individual's ODB drug claims information, unless that individual has withdrawn consent
  • Registration management system to support the identification, enrolment, authentication and access privileges of DPV System users
  • Consent management system to manage the consent directives of ODB recipients
  • Detailed audit trail to identify users who request and/or view drug profiles
  • Production of operational reports including statistics on DPV System use

The DPV System is maintained and operated by eHealth Ontario under the direction of the MOHLTC.

Benefits

Preventable adverse drug events can result in serious, negative patient health outcomes and increased demand on health care resources. These events occur for several reasons. In emergency situations, patients with severe health issues may not be able to communicate with providers (e.g., unconscious, language barriers). In these and other circumstances, a health care provider may not be aware of all the medications a patient is taking and may prescribe a drug that is contra-indicated, especially if the patient is taking multiple medications.

The DPV System is helping to prevent a significant number of adverse drug events in health care settings by providing the drug claims histories of many patients seeking care. The ability to electronically share medication information between authorized health care providers is one of the most important aspects of a complete electronic health record and can improve patient safety.

Patient benefits:

• Contributes to increased patient safety and the prevention of adverse drug reactions
  Faster assessments and treatments
• Reduces the need to repeat medication information
  Access to drug history is immediate - in real time - and is simple and quick to use

Health service provider benefits:

• Provides a strong foundation when reconciling a patient's medication history
• Contributes to faster recognition and prevention of adverse drug reactions
• Potentially expedites medical assessments, allowing for a faster diagnosis

Progress to date

The DPV System is operational in all hospitals in Ontario and providing value on a daily basis.

Next Steps

eHealth Ontario is leading the development and delivery of a provincial electronic MMS. The provincial system will provide a secure and comprehensive record of medications to enhance care for Ontarians. The MMS will build upon the benefits of the DPV, and will eventually replace the DPV in clinical settings across the province.

The valuable lessons learned from the DPV, more specifically for the provision of centralized medication information in clinical settings, will help to inform the development of the MMS and the broader provincial rollout.