Always check who owns the mobile number before issuing an e-script — that’s the top tip to avoid privacy breaches from Dr Daniel Byrne, a GP from SA who has been using e-prescribing since July.

Dr Byrne shared his words of wisdom during a webinar hosted by the Australian Digital Health Agency last week.

He pointed out how easily a privacy breach could occur, such as if the mobile number listed in a patient’s record belonged to a parent and dated back to when the patient was a toddler.

He shared the hypothetical of a case of a teenage girl presenting confidentially for the contraceptive pill, only for the e-script to be sent to the mother’s mobile because the GP hadn’t checked the number.