Prescribing Safety Alerts

Medication Safety Alerts

When issuing a medication, the system checks for potential safety issues and displays alerts. These are powered by clinical decision support (CDS) rules.

Alert Types

Hard Alerts (Red)

Hard alerts indicate serious safety concerns that must be addressed before proceeding:

• Allergy alerts - the patient has a recorded allergy to this medication or a related substance
• Contraindication alerts - the medication is contraindicated based on the patient's clinical record

Hard alerts block medication issuance until you either cancel or provide a clinical override.

Soft Alerts (Amber, Blue, Purple)

Soft alerts are advisory and do not block issuance:

• Caution alerts - additional care or monitoring may be needed
• Monitoring alerts - specific tests or observations should be tracked
• Interaction alerts - potential interactions with the patient's other medications

You can acknowledge soft alerts and continue.

Overriding a Hard Alert

If you have a clinical reason to proceed despite a hard alert:

1. Click the Override button on the alert
2. The CDS Override dialog opens
3. Enter a clinical justification explaining why it is appropriate to proceed (minimum 10 characters)
4. Confirm the override

The override and justification are recorded in the audit trail.

Where Alerts Appear

Alerts appear inline within the Issue Medication flow, between the medication selection and the issue button. They are checked automatically each time you select a medication.

Tip: Never override a hard alert without a genuine clinical reason. The justification is recorded permanently and may be reviewed during clinical audit.

Note: Safety alerts are powered by the AI Assistant when enabled. See the AI Assistant article in Integrations & Apps for credit and usage information.