A cross-sectional study of prescription audit in outpatient departments of tertiary care hospital

Abstract

Background: Prescriptions are medico-legal documents, and it is the duty of every physician to write a complete, legible, and valid prescription to ensure rational drug use and prevent the occurrence of medication errors. A periodic prescription audit is required for the identification of common deficiencies in the prescriptions and to undertake corrective measures for improving the prescribing practices. This is a quality improvement process that seeks to improve patient care. It supports health professionals in making sure their patients receive the best possible care. Aims and Objectives: To find out the common areas of noncompliance in prescriptions by using the prescription audit tool by the National Health Mission. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study of prescription audits was conducted using the prescription audit tool by the National Health Mission. Prescriptions were randomly taken from various clinical outpatient departments according to the percentage they contribute to the outpatient population. This tool contains both indicators to check the completeness of the prescription and indicators for the legibility and rationality of the prescription. 235 prescriptions were audited, and the parameters that scored low were identified. Results: The lowest score was seen with parameters like mentioning allergy status (4.89%), duly signing prescriptions (44%), recording follow-up advice and precautions (19%), and mentioning the review date (16.8%). Parameters that need improvement are recording the brief history and salient features of the clinical examination, to write the presumptive diagnosis. Conclusion: Conducting prescription audits frequently in all hospitals help in better understanding the prescribing behavior of the physicians, and followed by constant communication and training of the physicians, this is the most effective way to improve prescription practice within the hospital.