Tabula Rasa HealthCare today launched MedWise on its PrescribeWellness platform for pharmacists to cumulatively compare how different medications interact with each other. 

The company, which focuses on improving medication safety, developed this service to allow pharmacists to see how medications will work together on a larger scale than one-to-one. By doing this, Tabula Rasa says adverse drug events can be reduced. 

Included with the software is a MedWise Risk Score calculation and MedWise Decision Support. The decision-support tool will change the risk score in real time so pharmacists can assess complex medication-regimens’ safety.

WHY THIS MATTERS

Adverse drug events (ADE) cause approximately 1.3 million emergency department visits each year, according to the CDC. 

They are more common among older adults because people typically take more medication as they age. 

Many ADEs are preventable, according to HHS. In an effort to reduce the number of these events, the National Action Plan for Adverse Drug Event Prevention was created. 

With its four-pronged approach that targets surveillance, prevention, incentives and oversight, and research, the ADE Action Plan hopes to reduce patient harm nationally.

THE LARGER TREND

Tabula Rasa has been operating in the medication-safety space for years. In 2018, the company acquired DoseMe, an Australian company also focused on helping clinicians and pharmacists figure out the proper dose of medication for high-needs individuals.

Other companies include MedAware, which uses machine learning algorithms to find and eliminate dangerous prescription errors. 

The online platform PatientsLikeMe, which offers people a chance to connect with others who have similar health conditions, lets patients connect to researchers and share experiences, including ones about their experiences with certain medications and treatments. It attracted attention from the FDA in 2017 for a research study that could point the way toward a new channel for patient-generated health data. It was acquired by UnitedHealth Group last summer. 

ON THE RECORD

“Community pharmacists have at their disposal an unprecedented opportunity for risk mitigation and clinical intervention utilizing MedWise, available within the PrescribeWellness software," EVP of PrescribeWellness Farah Madhat said in a statement. "The MedWise platform has revolutionized how pharmacists develop clinical interventions to prevent ADEs and improve patient safety. This is particularly helpful considering the multi-drug interactions that occur with medications that are being used to treat COVID-19. MedWise has led to improved quality, enhanced patient loyalty, retention, and medical costs savings, all of which are critical outcomes for our clients.”