Improvements in health information technology have made aggregate multipayer pharmacy claims data increasingly available through the electronic health record (EHR). The objective of this study was to assess the current awareness, utilization, and impact of pharmacy history data available in the EHR on primary care provider (PCP) decision making. A 14-question survey was distributed to all PCPs in a large medical practice. Of the 55/72 responding PCPs, 47 (85.5%) were aware of the EHR medication history function, and 36 (65.5%) had used it previously. Respondents indicated the medication history could be most useful when considering prescribing a narcotic (33/36, 92%) and when addressing nonadherence concerns (28/35, 80%). Barriers included delays in data loading and the time pressures of clinical practice. Access to aggregate multipayer pharmacy history data has the potential to affect medication reconciliation, yet future implementation should focus on making these data complete and easily available in routine practice.
Keywords: claims data; electronic health record; medication history; primary care.