Maharashtra Medical Council (MMC) has recently issued a standard prescription format for allopathic doctors in the state to boost an accurate, uniform, standard and clear prescription for the sake of patient safety. The new format, prepared by Medical Council of India (MCI), is applicable for all doctors who practice allopathy in the country.

Over 80,000 MMC-affiliated doctors are expected to start using the new format from April onwards. MMC is a statutory body having powers to suspend the license of a doctor who is found guilty of malpractice.

The new format will be made available on the website of Maharashtra Medical Council. Dr Shivkumar Utture, executive member, MMC, says, "The format which took some time to be approved by the executive committee has been prepared in consultation with all the state councils of the country. This standard hard copy format is very much required for prescribing medicines in the interest of patient safety. The format also offers the physician to write generic medicines based on the efficacy, affordability and availability of drugs."

As per the new guidelines, allopathic doctors must write prescriptions legibly and in capital letters as well as furnish a complete and detailed prescription. The physicians have to also mandatorily mention the patient's address and keep blank space in which the pharmacist can specify his/her address. The comprehensive format includes the doctor's full name, his/her qualification, patient's details, name of the generic medicine or its equivalent along with the dosage, strength, dosage form and instruction, name and address of medical store with pharmacist's name and date of dispensing, as well as the doctor's signature and stamp.

Experts say that doctors in some countries, including the United States, print out prescriptions for the sake of clarity. In several countries, printed prescriptions are mandatory because they are not only legible, but also constitute a database of medication that the patient has taken over the years.

This is in consonance to the trend picking up for patients looking at online websites also like HelpingDoc.com, Ask4Healthcare, bookmydoctor.com, Lybrate offering doctor appointment and consultation. Amit Bansal, CEO, HelpingDoc explains “We get around 200 consultation queries from NRI patients every month. Sometimes patients need not to visit India for the consultation, they get advice by the senior medical consultant through internet." This may be some good news for Indian patients as the overall cost of in-person primary physician appointment is high than compared to online appointments. E-visits or online consultation is gaining traction in the US.

On this Dr Utture opines, "Online consulting is permissible but a standard prescription format will always offer authenticity and clarity in the form of doctor's stamp and signature."