OREvery time, the same story: the rush to get to the GP’s office before it closes, the wait together with the patients who need a consultation, and the same request, every month. That is, the renewal of the exact same recipe. The millions of Italians who live with chronic pathologiessuch as diabetes or hypertension, they can finally say goodbye to this ritual fixed and stressful, which has little to do with treatment. Medical prescriptions become annual.
Chronic diseases: the medical prescription becomes annual
With the definitive approval of the Simplifications Bill, Italy has turned the page. The decree, in fact, introduces the medical prescription with validity extended up to twelve months for chronic patients. This is not a simple experiment, but a national standard that revolutionizes the way we manage continuous therapy. The objective is twofold: restoring dignity and time to citizens and allowing doctors to focus on those who really need a clinical consultation.
The mechanism that frees time
But let’s understand how the new system works. It’s much simpler than you might think. The patient’s doctor will indicate on the National Health Service prescription the quantity of drug needed and the dosage (i.e. the method of intake) for an entire year. Be careful, however: you will not receive a twelve-month supply in one go, but the distribution will be split.
The annual prescription arrives that changes the lives of chronically ill patients (Getty)
Every month directly in the pharmacy
Every month, the patient will have to go to the pharmacy and here you will only receive enough medicine for the next 30 days. This method guarantees that the therapy is covered for 365 days without the need to return to the clinic, but maintains a monthly control on consumption. It is a pact of trust that transforms the pharmacist into a point of reference which monitors adherence to treatment.
Annual medical prescription: the list of stable treatments
The annual recipe is intended to those suffering from conditions that require stable pharmacological treatment and prolonged over time. We are talking about millions of people managing on a daily basis diseases such as arterial hypertension or who require treatment for heart failure. Those living with diabetes (type 1 and 2) or must keep cholesterol and triglyceride levels under control (dyslipidemia). People with persistent asthma or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Who follows therapies for rheumatoid arthritishypothyroidism or stabilized epilepsy.
The end of the hospital paradox
There is another great innovation in the Bill which puts an end to a paradox of Italian healthcare. Until now, patients left the hospital after hospitalization, or from the emergency room, with a discharge letter which indicated medications to be taken but which were totally useless in the pharmacy: first it had to be transformed into a GP’s prescription.
From now on, the drugs indicated in the hospital discharge letter or in the emergency room reports have immediate prescriptive value. This simplification accelerates the start of post-hospital care, reducing stress and the risk of treatment interruptions at the most delicate moment.