Understanding the Components of Prescriptions

As a Medical Assistant, the provider may sometimes ask you to complete prescription forms. This article will review what a prescription is, its key components, and the Medical Assistant’s role in prescription refills. In most offices, prescriptions are written daily, and sometimes, the pharmacy will call with questions. Therefore, understanding all the components of prescriptions is very important. 

First, the most important thing is knowing what a prescription is. A prescription is a written direction for a therapeutic or corrective agent¹; in other words, a provider's written order for medicine or medical devices. Prescriptions must be prescribed or written specifically for each patient. Medical Assistants may sometimes be asked to complete prescription forms and obtain the provider's signature. 

There are 12 principal components of a prescription required to ensure validity.² The very first is the date. The date is needed for two reasons, the first being for documentation and proof of when the medication or medical device was prescribed. The second reason is that all prescriptions must be filled within six months of the prescription date.³ The next component is the patient's name and address. This is very important as the pharmacy and pharmacist will need the patient's name to fill out the prescription. Additionally, all schedule II drugs and controlled substances require the address of the patient.⁴ 

The third component is the patient's date of birth; this is used primarily as a key identifier for the patient. The fourth component is the superscription, located at the top left side of the prescription pad; the superscription is the Rx symbol. This symbol means the recipe, in which the provider will put three more components below. The fifth, sixth, and seventh components consist of the inscription. The inscription is the prescribed drug's name, dosage, and form.^3,4 The dosage can be in mg or mL, and the form can be liquid, tablet, capsule, etc. This is important as the pharmacy and pharmacist will need this information to fill any type of medication for the patient.    

The eighth component is the subscription, which is the amount of the inscription—for example, 60 tablets or 120 mLs.^3,4 The ninth component is the signature, also sometimes written as Sig. This is the instruction on how to take the medication prescribed—for example, take 2 tabs PO QID. These instructions mean “take two tablets by mouth four times a day.” If a provider writes this in the prescription, the pharmacy will typically write it without abbreviations. The tenth component is refills. Refills are the number of times the prescription can be refilled at the pharmacy. This can be a written number saying “2 refills” or an area with a number line. If no refills are permitted and there is no number line, writing “No Refills” is crucial because if a simple 0 is put in, it can easily be changed to 10. 

The eleventh component is the provider's signature and DEA number. For the prescription to be valid, a provider must sign their name and add their DEA number. A DEA number is a special license given to a provider by the US Drug Enforcement Administration, allowing them to prescribe medications and medical devices. The final component is Generic. “Generic” mainly asks if a generic medication is okay to be used in substitution for a name-brand medication. If generic medications are okay, they write “generic okay” or “Generic ✓.” If generic substitutions are not allowed, DAW is typically written. DAW stands for Dispense As Written. 

It is essential that when writing a prescription, the Medical Assistant uses legible handwriting. It is also crucial to use abbreviations correctly; misuse of abbreviations can cause errors in how the patient takes the medication. Almost three-quarters of medication errors that cause harm to the patient are due to how the prescription is written.⁵ Another significant part of a Medical Assistant's duties regarding prescriptions is addressing refills. Patients and pharmacists will regularly call the office to get prescriptions refilled. It is the Medical Assistant's job to communicate with the provider to see if a prescription refill is okay, and if so, they will need to call in the prescription.

References

1. Merriam-Webster. (n.d.). Prescription definition & meaning. Merriam-Webster. https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prescription 
2. Kenny, B. J. (2024, January 9). Pharmacy prescription requirements. StatPearls [Internet]. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK538424/ 
3. Kronenberger, J., & Ledbetter, J. (2016). Lippincott Williams & Wilkins’ comprehensive medical assisting (5th ed.). Lippincott Williams & Wilkins. 
4. Person, & Bobby Christensen, O. F. (1997, February 1). How to write prescriptions clearly and concisely. Healio. https://www.healio.com/news/optometry/20120225/how-to-write-prescriptions-clearly-and-concisely 
5. Turner, L. (2022, July 21). How to write a prescription: 7 steps for safety - SDN. Student Doctor Network. https://www.studentdoctor.net/2018/08/15/how-to-write-a-prescription/