Suggestions in the National Health Board's review of Dunedin Hospital that the nationally funded pilot is not finished and needs more evaluation was news to him.
Dr Bowers, an internal medicine specialist, the Southern District Health Board's medical director of IT and leader of the project, said he was told many weeks ago, and had it confirmed in writing, Dunedin's part of the evaluation was complete.
The NHB team recommended the pilot be completed and the Southern District Health Board have it evaluated by the Health and Safety Commission by November.
Dr Bowers said the hospital's evaluation work had been done since February.
He suggested "various groups forming in Wellington could do better talking to each other".
If they had come up with any new requests for evaluation, "we are yet to hear".
The writing of independent reports on the pilot, which was funded nationally, might still be incomplete within the Ministry of Health, he said.
The ministry had received all the data since February "or thereabouts". Dr Bowers described the ministry's process as "rather slow".
However, team leader of the NHB group which reviewed Dunedin Hospital systems Jill Lane said an initial evaluation of local findings had been done, but it needed to be "completed at a different level" to support national introduction of a project of this size.
This would require completing and evaluating the pilot "in line with the original national pilot agreement".
Questioned further about this, the National Health Board advised that it, the National IT Health Board and the Health Quality and Safety Commission all agreed more evaluation was required by the DHB.
Ms Lane said the board had not drawn down all the money available for the pilot and, after successful evaluation, might be eligible for the remaining $250,000.
Dr Bowers said the board had been given permission to draw on the unspent money referred to by Ms Lane to keep the electronic prescribing programme going until longer-term funding could be arranged.
The money available was the result of the pilot, which finished at the end of January, coming in under budget.
In its report, the NHB assessment team also asks that next month a .2 full-time equivalent pharmacist position be established to maintain the electronic prescribing programme.
