A new era in electronic prescribing – the Active Script List
Electronic prescriptions (e-scripts), are a secure, fast and efficient alternative to dispensing paper-based prescriptions for patient medications.
In Australia, more than 219 million e-scripts have been issued directly to a patient's mobile phone or email address from their doctor or prescribing practitioner since being introduced in May 2020. *
With many patients now managing multiple e-script tokens at a time, the 'Active Script List' (ALS) solution provides patients and their care providers support by collecting the tokens into one medications list for easier management.
*2024 figures from the Australian Digital Health Agency.
Key Active Script List information for healthcare providers
The Active Script List (ASL) is a consolidated list of a patient’s active prescriptions, removing the need for a patient to receive an e-script token by SMS or email. This can simplify the process for patients if:
they manage multiple prescriptions
tokens are lost
mobile phone numbers and email addresses change.
When prescribing via the ASL in clinical software, prescribers will need to select the ASL button instead of the token button. Please note, in some of the clinical software ASL is known as MySL or MSL.
Watch this short video for healthcare providers about the ASL:
Key information for your patients
The ASL allows patients to attend any participating pharmacy, provide consent for the pharmacy to access their list, and have that pharmacy dispense their medications.
Patients can register for an ASL by:
visiting a pharmacy that is enabled for this service (many pharmacies are now connected)
having proof of identity (e.g. driver’s licence)
requesting an activation code and replying “yes” to confirm activation.
Patients can appoint a carer or agent to manage their script list and collect medication.
Collecting a prescription medicine – what works best for your patient?
Prescribers are encouraged to discuss with patients and carers how they would like to receive and manage their prescriptions.
Typically, there are 3 common ways a patient can receive their prescription medication. This could be through:
a barcoded paper prescription where the patient will need to bring the paper copy of the prescription to the pharmacy to have their medication legally dispensed.
an electronic prescription, sent to the patient as a ‘token’ via SMS or email. The token is brought to the pharmacy to have the medication legally dispensed.
an electronic prescription is sent to the Active Script List (ASL). The ASL allows patients to attend any participating pharmacy, provide consent for the pharmacy to access their list, and have that pharmacy dispense their medication. Patients must first register with a pharmacy for the ASL and provide evidence of identity.
More information for prescribers
Free webinars and further resources on the ASL can be found on the Australian Digital Health Agency (ADHA) website.