Integrate personal identifiers into prescriptions

Specifically, Circular 26/2025/TT-BYT, recently issued by the Ministry of Health , stipulates general requirements for prescription content, including: Fully, clearly and accurately recording items in the prescription or in the patient's medical record; recording information about the patient's personal identification number or citizen identification number or identity number or passport number; recording information about the patient's place of residence.

For children under 72 months old, the child's age, weight, and the full name of the person bringing the child for medical examination and treatment must be recorded.

Tích hợp định danh cá nhân vào đơn thuốc- Ảnh 1. — Electronic prescriptions must include the patient's personal identification number or citizen identification number or passport number - Photo: VGP/HM

Simplify procedures, avoid errors

Mr. Vuong Anh Duong, Deputy Director of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management, Ministry of Health, said that integrating personal identification numbers into prescriptions is an important step to synchronize medical data with the National Population Database System. This is also an implementation in accordance with the spirit of Project 06 of the Government.

When people use their personal identification numbers, many administrative information such as full name, date of birth, gender, address, etc. will be automatically displayed on the system. This will help reduce prescription time, limit errors and simplify procedures for both patients and medical staff.

"In the long term, this is also an important foundation for building a unified electronic health record, better serving continuous health care and managing people's medical information," Mr. Vuong Anh Duong emphasized.

Regarding the connection of prescription data and drug management to help control drug abuse, the leader of the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management said that the connection system will promptly detect incorrect prescriptions and drugs sold without the correct prescription. As for the people, the QR code on the electronic prescription will allow them to look up the type of drug, dosage, and treatment history in a transparent and easy-to-track manner.

In the coming time, the Ministry of Health said it will increase technical support, update software, and especially prioritize guidance for grassroots health care - to ensure that all medical examination and treatment facilities can implement effectively.

Deadline for mandatory electronic prescriptions

Also according to Circular 26/2025/TT-BYT, medical examination and treatment facilities organized as hospitals must implement electronic prescriptions before October 1, 2025. Other medical examination and treatment facilities must implement electronic prescriptions before January 1, 2026.

Accordingly, electronic prescriptions must be created, displayed, signed, shared, and stored electronically and have the same legal value as paper prescriptions. The Ministry of Health will issue identification codes for medical examination and treatment facilities and practitioner codes to subjects under its management authority through the national prescription system.

According to statistics from the Vietnam Medical Informatics Association, up to now, more than 60% of hospitals nationwide have implemented electronic prescriptions and national prescription linkage. At health stations, this rate is about 80%. The private health sector (general and specialized clinics) has the lowest rate, about 20%.

Of the more than 20,000 drugs that have been granted registration numbers for circulation in Vietnam, about 85% are currently prescription drugs.

Also according to the Ministry of Health, electronic prescriptions and linking prescriptions with the national prescription system aim to monitor each doctor's prescriptions, ensure transparency and accuracy, and at the same time ensure the rights of patients, not to buy the wrong medicine compared to the prescription, which medicines have been purchased, especially antibiotics...

On each electronic prescription, the management agency will be able to retrieve detailed information about the origin of the prescription; view detailed information about the prescribing physician (practitioner code), practice certificate documents, operating facility, etc. From there, it also ensures that the prescription has a correct, sufficient, accurate legal basis, and is under the correct practice authority.

The Ministry of Health also noted that in the process of implementing the provisions of Circular 26/2025/TT-BYT, if there are any difficulties or problems, agencies, organizations and individuals should promptly report to the Department of Medical Examination and Treatment Management, Ministry of Health for consideration and resolution.

Thuy Ha

Source: https://baochinhphu.vn/tich-hop-dinh-danh-ca-nhan-vao-don-thuoc-102250707140546712.htm