Eligible prescribers (medical practitioners, nurse practitioners and dentists) and pharmacists registered with Ahpra are able to access SafeScript NSW, after they have registered for the system.
NSW Health employees who are involved in the Opioid Treatment Program (OTP) process can also access SafeScript NSW via invitation from a registered prescriber.
A phased rollout of SafeScript NSW was completed for all areas of NSW by May 2022.
SafeScript NSW has the potential to help save lives and reduce unsafe use of monitored medicines in the community. While the use of SafeScript NSW is not mandatory, all practising prescribers and pharmacists in NSW are encouraged to use the system.
NSW is committed to national real time prescription monitoring (RTPM), which will reduce unsafe prescribing of monitored medicines and use of these medications that is likely to result in harm. RTPM will also support increased regulatory efficiency and monitoring across jurisdictions.
SafeScript NSW, along with RTPM solutions of other states and territories, interacts with the National Data Exchange provided by the Australian Government Department of Health.
To learn more about the national RTPM program visit the Australian Government Department of Health website.
An expert panel of academics, pharmacologists and experts in addiction medicine and pain management was established to provide advice to NSW Health when determining the medicines that will be monitored in SafeScript NSW. The panel also considered approaches in other states and territories when determining the monitored medicines list for NSW.
The following criteria were used to guide decision making when considering the inclusion of Schedule 4 medicines in the SafeScript NSW system:
Yes, however this will depend on how prescribers and pharmacists are recording OTP prescribing and dispensing for their patients. Where prescribers and pharmacists use clinical software that is connected to the electronic prescription exchange, this information will be collected and visible in SafeScript NSW.
Where connected software is not used, which is particularly the case with OTP provided in public and private clinics in NSW, this information will not be visible in SafeScript NSW. This means that the methadone or buprenorphine medicine prescribed and supplied by them to a patient as part of the OTP may not be included in the patient’s SafeScript NSW patient history (i.e. transactional record).
Users will also be able to see OTP approval history and OTP dosing points associated with their patients which will provide a much more complete picture. More information about patient record types.
Yes. The collection of prescribing and dispensing information about monitored medicines is authorised under the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Regulation 2008. All prescribing and dispensing transactions for monitored medicines that are generated using a Prescription Exchange Service (PES) will be collected by SafeScript NSW even if the individual prescriber or pharmacist is not registered to access SafeScript NSW.
NSW Health hospitals and outpatient clinic information systems will not be integrated with the SafeScript NSW system at this stage because NSW Health prescribing and dispensing systems are not currently integrated with electronic prescribing infrastructure. Exploratory work is currently underway to implement ePrescribing in NSW Health facilities. NSW Health public hospital and clinic prescribers and pharmacists can log into the SafeScript NSW system using their StaffLink ID and password to view a history of their patient’s high-risk medicines prescribed or dispensed in the community.
You must be registered with SafeScript NSW to access it. If you are using integrated clinical software (such as Best Practice or Z Dispense) you can login and access SafeScript NSW through your software. You can also access SafeScript NSW via the portal.
While a prescriber or pharmacist does not need patient consent to view their SafeScript NSW records, it is good clinical practice to talk to the patient about what information is being accessed and how the information is being used to inform decisions about their treatment.
A prescriber or pharmacist is permitted to view a patient record in SafeScript NSW in the following circumstances:
Interstate practitioners may access SafeScript NSW if they treat a patient who lives in NSW or who receives treatment from NSW practitioners, or to submit an application to prescribe and/or supply high risk medicines to NSW-based patients. This includes telehealth services.
For more information, view the factsheet or view the interstate practitioners help page.
Access to information that relates to prescribing or dispensing in another state or territory should continue to occur via that state’s RTPM system.
The Commonwealth Department of Health is working with States and Territories to develop a data sharing framework that will facilitate the sharing of information between the jurisdictional systems. The intent is for health practitioners to be able to access the information they need to inform their practice, wherever they are in Australia. There is not an established timeframe for this work, but health practitioners will be notified when there is further progress.
No, SafeScript NSW can only be accessed within Australia. This has been introduced to reduce the risk of external data breaches and ensures the security of private patient information.
If you are located within Australia and you receive a notification that you are unable to access SafeScript NSW due to your internet service being routed outside of Australia, please contact your IT or internet service provider to help re-route your access via an Australian IP address.
If you are travelling overseas and plan to use SafeScript NSW, it’s suggested to add a locum to your profile to manage your patients. For instructions on how to do this, visit SafeScript NSW WebHelp.
Those accessing SafeScript NSW using a Virtual Private Network (VPN) routed via an Australian server are unaffected.
For all other technical support inquiries, please refer to SafeScript NSW technical support.
No. So long as your software is configured to enable SafeScript NSW then the system will operate in the background and only send you a pop-up notification when you are in the process of prescribing or dispensing a monitored medicine. If you are not registered, the pop-up notification will not take you to the patient profile. If you are registered but not logged in, a prompt to login into SafeScript NSW will be displayed.
Some information on configuring your software can be found on the Access using clinical software page.
Locum pharmacists can register with SafeScript NSW. The registration process is no different to that of other eligible practitioners. Once registered, the locum pharmacist can then view patient profiles by logging into the SafeScript NSW portal directly. When logged into the portal, the locum pharmacist can enter the pharmacy approval number and view the 20 most recent notifications that have been generated at that pharmacy.
Where the pharmacy at which they are working on any individual day is using integrated software, the locum pharmacist will receive pop-up notifications and will be able to access the SafeScript NSW portal by clicking on selected notifications to view information about the associated alerts and the patient’s monitored medicines history.
A PBS prescriber number is required to register for SafeScript NSW using the self-registration portal (prescribers only). If you do not have a prescriber number, and wish to register for SafeScript NSW, please contact technical support via email or on 1800 776 633.
Please note, PBS prescriber number is used for identification purposes only.
Other users, such as NSW Health employees who are involved in the OTP process may also be granted access to SafeScript NSW through invitation from a prescriber.
It depends on your clinical practice. Most practitioners will log into SafeScript NSW in response to an amber or red pop-up notification. However other practitioners may want to log in once at the beginning of the day and set a daily PIN to streamline their ongoing access throughout the day.
If you are an infrequent user of SafeScript NSW, you may choose to set a password instead of creating a PIN when logging in to the system. More information on changing your preferred option.
The prescribing and dispensing event data feed for monitored medicines in NSW commenced 7 April 2021.
More information on pop-up notifications and alerts is available here. In addition, this fact sheet provides further details about alerts in SafeScript NSW, including the clinical evidence supporting each alert.
SafeScript NSW uses first name, last name, and date of birth to match patient records. If the patient provides false or inaccurate details, then you may not be able to locate matched records.
Yes. Prescribers and pharmacists may still prescribe and dispense monitored medicines even if there is a warning if they believe it is clinically safe and appropriate to do so. The SafeScript NSW system provides health practitioners with improved quality of information at the point of care that is intended to aid clinical decision making and ensure appropriate use of monitored medicines.
If deciding that a medicine is no longer the safest treatment, it’s important to remember good clinical practice involves ensuring that appropriate continuity of care is provided for the patient. Abruptly discharging the patient or suddenly stopping treatment of patients who have been taking high-risk medicines over a long period of time is contrary to patient safety.
Pharmacists may want to contact prescribers when a prescription is issued following a red or amber notification. This is good clinical practice for a pharmacist and would happen now if they have concerns about dispensing a particular medicine.
We have not seen or heard of reports from Phase 1 or 2 of a significant increase in the number of calls to GPs in this regard.
Pharmacists are encouraged to view the Access History in the patient record to see if the prescriber has viewed the corresponding alert. This would help inform any conversation with the prescriber about the alert and/or decision to dispense.
SafeScript NSW supports a co-ordinated approach to patient care which involves the prescriber and the pharmacist.
Yes. Records of private prescriptions are included in the SafeScript NSW system when they are either prescribed electronically or dispensed in a community pharmacy.
SafeScript NSW collects prescribing and dispensing information about monitored medicines via the electronic prescription exchange service (PES) that are already connected to most primary care prescribing and dispensing systems.
SafeScript NSW collects information for any monitored medicines that are sent to the PES regardless of whether it was supplied on a Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS) subsidy or private prescription.
Yes. People who access prescriptions privately without a Medicare card will also be captured on the system.
Yes. Non-PBS prescriptions will be captured in SafeScript NSW, provided that the prescribing and/or dispensing system are connected to the Prescription Exchange Service (PES).
Prescribing events for handwritten prescriptions will not be captured in SafeScript NSW, however where the associated dispensing event is conducted electronically with software integrated with the PES, the information about the prescription will be captured in SafeScript NSW as a dispensing event.
If the pharmacy is using integrated dispensing software, pop-up notifications will be generated during the dispensing process. Pop-up notifications will be generated for dispensing by both assistants/technicians and pharmacists. However, pharmacy technicians and assistants are not eligible to register for SafeScript NSW and therefore will not be able to log into the system when the notification is triggered. Only prescribers and pharmacists registered with Aphra are legally authorised to access SafeScript NSW and are responsible for ensuring that it is for their use only.
An approval, previously known as an ‘authority’, supports prescribers to prescribe or supply high-risk medicines where required under the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966 (the Act). For more information about approvals, visit About approval management.
An approval is a NSW specific permission to prescribe or supply certain high-risk medicines (such as drugs of addiction) where required under the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966 (the Act). A Pharmaceutical Benefit Scheme authority is required to allow patients to access medicines under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme at a subsidised rate and is managed by the Commonwealth government.
In some instances, both a NSW approval and a PBS Authority are needed. SafeScript NSW allows prescribers to submit applications for a NSW Approval (previously authority) to meet the required regulatory responsibility.
A prescriber requires a NSW approval prior to the supply or prescription for:
Learn more about approval management.
Application forms that are not available online will continue to be submitted through the paper or PDF forms found on the Pharmaceutical Services website.
NSW Health has revised the policy on prescribing and supply of psychostimulants to help facilitate access to treatment, reduce the burden on patients, families and carers and recognise the professional responsibility and scope of practice of prescribers.
With this, paediatricians, psychiatrists and neurologists can prescribe up to the maximum dose limits for treatment of ADHD to non-drug dependent persons without seeking approval from NSW Health. For any other indications, or when dosages exceed maximum thresholds or the patient is considered to be substance dependent, an approval will be required.
Learn more about prescribing psychostimulants.
Prescribers are encouraged to use SafeScript NSW to submit their applications to prescribe or supply high-risk medicines where required under the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act 1966 (the Act).
SafeScript NSW allows prescribers to:
Paper and PDF forms will continue to be available for prescribers to support the transition to SafeScript NSW.
Patient records in SafeScript NSW are divided by the type of information they contain.
When applying for an approval, if the patient has more than one type of record, the “Linked” or “Regulatory” record should be used.
These profiles will also minimise multiple profiles being generated with split patient information. If only a transactional record is available for your patient, you may still submit applications via the Approval tab, however, the identity information will need to be reviewed by the Pharmaceutical Services Unit before the approval can be issued. For more information, visit Understanding Patient Record Types in SafeScript NSW reference guide.
Users may find patient records that have a transactional and/or regulatory record but no information in the grids. This is because SafeScript NSW only displays information for the last two years.
If you find this profile, be assured it is displaying all the available information held in SafeScript NSW for the last 2 years. We encourage users to proceed with their approval applications as per usual if this is the case.
The main reason why a patient record may not be found is because they do not have approval or high-risk medicine history recorded.
If that is the case, prescribers can apply online and manually add the patient’s information into the application form in SafeScript NSW.
There are other reasons why your patient’s information may not appear in SafeScript NSW, including:
Although users can use a Medicare, DVA or IHI number to search, the database may not have these identifier numbers attributed to your patient in SafeScript NSW. It is suggested to try an ID search and if no results are found, use the name and date of birth search.
If you believe there is inaccurate data or multiple patient records for the same patient, please contact the SafeScript NSW Technical Support Team. They can be reached by email or by calling 1800 776 633. Please provide any key information that may help them understand why this information may be inaccurate.
If your patient’s information cannot be found in SafeScript NSW, you can still apply for an approval. Your submitted application will help us refine our records and improve future applications for your patients.
There may be multiple patient records in SafeScript NSW depending on what information has been extracted from a patient’s NSW Health regulatory record or from clinical prescribing/dispensing systems connected to electronic Prescription Exchange Service (PES).
SafeScript NSW reviews and combines matching records when sufficient patient identifying information is available. If there are any differences between the patient’s information, the system will treat these as different patients.
To improve matching of records in SafeScript NSW, practitioners are strongly encouraged to enter the exact name on the patient’s Medicare card and record their date of birth, sex and Medicare/ Department of Veterans' Affairs (DVA) number in their clinical systems, validate a patient’s Individual Healthcare Identifier (IHI) number within their clinical systems and provide accurate information when applying for a NSW approval to prescribe a high risk medicine.
If users see more than one record for the same patient and believe that they should be combined, they should submit a request to the technical support team or call 1800 776 633 and provide them with the following details:
If users notice any information in SafeScript NSW that they believe is incorrect, they can report this information by emailing the technical support team or by calling 1800 776 633. Provide any key information that may help the support team to determine if and why the information may be inaccurate.
If you have already registered for SafeScript NSW, the functionality will automatically be available when you log in to the portal.
If you are yet to register, visit the Register for SafeScript NSW page.
If you are not a prescriber or pharmacist but a NSW Health employee who is involved in the Opioid Treatment Program (OTP) process, a prescriber from your organisation will need to send you an invitation to access SafeScript NSW.
Applying for an approval in SafeScript NSW can be done in a few simple steps. For instructions on how to do this, visit SafeScript NSW WebHelp and review the “Apply for an <approval type>” section for the medicine you are wanting.
The approval management functionality is automatically applied to all registered practitioner accounts.
For NSW Health employees who are involved in the OTP process, access can be gained through an invitation from a prescriber.
The following access will be granted depending on your role:
* Unavailable for acting locums
If a patient profile already exists in SafeScript NSW, an application can be submitted in a quick step-by-step process. In many cases, an application meeting specific criteria will be approved immediately.
If a patient does not have a profile in SafeScript NSW, prescribers can enter patients details within the online application process. Once submitted, the application will need to be reviewed by an officer from the NSW Ministry of Health Pharmaceutical Services Unit, who will verify the patient’s details and update the application. This process can take up to 2 business days for the Opioid Treatment Program (OTP) or 7 business days for other Schedule 8 medicines.
The progress of an application is updated in SafeScript NSW in real-time. Prescribers will receive email notifications about the outcome of their application as it is processed and approved. The associated documentation can be found on your correspondence page or in the approval summary.
Where an application meets specific criteria, SafeScript NSW may approve your application immediately, allowing you to prescribe and/or supply medicines for your patients within their appointment.
At times, depending on what’s been entered in the application (e.g. entering a newly added patient or organisation), it may need to be reviewed by the officers in the Pharmaceutical Services Unit. Applicants and users linked to the same organisation can monitor the application's progress and prescribers will receive email notifications when the status of their application changes.
For more information on how to monitor your applications, visit the Managing Approvals page or SafeScript NSW WebHelp.
If you want to prescribe a medicine to your patient and notice that SafeScript NSW shows an approval issued to another prescriber, you will need to contact this prescriber to discuss the care of the patient. SafeScript NSW will not provide you with an approval immediately in this instance.
You need to ensure appropriate arrangements are in place for patient care and avoid duplication of treatment and issue of prescriptions by different prescribers for the same monitored medicine.
If you are involved in the care of a patient under the OTP, you can view a snapshot of their OTP information in the approval grid of a patient’s profile. The grid includes information like the approval number, start and end dates, prescriber, patient, medicine and maximum daily dose information. You can update dosing point details. Viewing and updating this information helps ensure patient safety and reduce risks, such as double dosing.
When viewing the approvals or correspondence pages in SafeScript NSW, you may see a small funnel icon at the top of a column in the grid view. By clicking on this icon , you can filter the results displayed.
After selecting the filter button, you can check the boxes next to each entry or type text to filter the grid. Pressing the “OK” button will display any records with matching information.
Use the “sort” functionality on the heading of each grid to sort by ascending/descending chronological or alphabetical order.
For more information on how to best utilise filters and sorting, view SafeScript NSW WebHelp.
A prescriber can see their patient limit for OTP approvals by going to their profile and scrolling down to the OTP Accreditation section. If you are an unaccredited OTP prescriber, you will be able to see the words “Your OTP patient limits”, followed by the current number of OTP approvals for each medicine type and your limit. If you have an OTP accreditation, you will instead see the combined total of OTP approvals, followed by your limit.
You can also review your OTP patient limit while applying for an approval. When you are filling in the online application form for an OTP approval, your patient limit will be displayed in the top right section, underneath the navigation header.
Adding an OTP dosing point provides users with visibility over where patients are dosing. After submitting an OTP application, a prescriber should add or update their patient’s dosing point information in the OTP Dosing Point section in the patient’s profile. This ensures that other health practitioners involved in their care have clarity on where the patient is being dosed.
Pharmacists can also add and update OTP dosing points for patients, especially in cases where the dosing point is unspecified or has changed due to unforeseen circumstances. Pharmacists are encouraged to review the approval history for patients that they dose under the OTP and confirm that the information is accurate. Where there are any concerns, pharmacists must contact the prescriber to confirm.
For detailed instructions on how enter dosing points, please refer to the SafeScript NSW WebHelp.
The prescriber can assign a locum doctor to have access all the current approvals for a specified period. To learn how to do this, visit SafeScript NSW WebHelp and search for 'locum'.
Yes. Prescribers will be able to submit applications via SafeScript NSW. Interstate practitioners will firstly need to register to the system to be able to apply. See SafeScript NSW WebHelp for instructions.
Interstate Opioid Treatment Program (OTP) prescribers should continue to submit paper/PDF applications for patients who are temporarily receiving treatment in NSW.
Like NSW prescribers, interstate prescribers will be able to use the online application form to apply to prescribe and supply medicines under the NSW Opioid Treatment Program (OTP), Schedule 8 psychostimulants, (dexamfetamine, lisdexamfetamine and methylphenidate), Schedule 8 benzodiazepines, Schedule 8 pain management medicines and esketamine and ketamine (for treatment resistant depression). Interstate prescribers will be able see all the same information that NSW-based prescribers can see.
Patients who are registered for NSW Opioid Treatment Program (OTP) should follow the NSW guidelinesand prescribers are reminded that any prescription to be dispensed within NSW must be compliant with the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Regulation 2008, NSW.
For more information, visit the Approval Management section of this website.
Yes. SafeScript NSW allows users to view approval letters addressed to the authorised prescriber. These documents can be downloaded and saved in PDF format which can be used with most clinical systems or internally stored.
If you have integrated SafeScript NSW into your clinical system, you will be able to access the patient’s high-risk medicine history (or transactional profile) as per usual.
If that patient’s record is linked with a regulatory account, you will be able to navigate to the patient’s regulatory profile by clicking the ‘Patient Profile’ button along the top right of the patient page and apply for an approval from there.
If there is no high-risk medicine history for the patient, you will need to log into SafeScript NSW and search for the patient to confirm whether they have a ‘regulatory’ record available.
For more information, visit SafeScript NSW’s WebHelp.
Your primary place of practice, linked organisations, communication preferences and locums can be edited on your profile.
Some of the information in your SafeScript NSW profile is retrieved from Ahpra and pre-populates your title, name, Aphra number, profession, registrations, and prescriber number. This information is read-only and cannot be edited.
For more information, visit SafeScript NSW WebHelp.
The term ‘organisation’ is used in SafeScript NSW to encompass various types of locations that users may be operating at. This includes clinics, hospitals, pharmacies, correctional facilities, community health facilities and more. Most commonly an organisation is a practice where a prescriber treats patients.
Prescribers who are linked to the same organisation can:
Organisations can be linked to your profile to give you visibility of all the applications made by other prescribers in your clinic. If you have applied for an approval previously, you may already have organisations linked to your profile. For instructions on how to do this, you can read our quick reference guide on How to Set Up your SafeScript NSW account.
NSW Health employees who are involved in the OTP process can only be linked to organisations through an invitation from a prescriber.
Note: This is not necessarily the same as your primary place of practice registered with Ahpra. SafeScript NSW recognises that you may work in multiple locations and allows you to enter these as required.
Education and training resources explain:
Support resources explain:
SafeScript NSW only contains information about monitored medicines that are prescribed for and supplied to patients. SafeScript NSW is not integrated with My Health Record in any way and does not add any information to My Health Record. A patient does not need to have My Health Record for a health practitioner to access information held about them in SafeScript NSW.
Any enquiries can be sent to the SafeScript NSW team.
