An evaluation of pharmacist activity in hospital outpatient clinics

Abstract

AbstractMultidisciplinary healthcare teams embedded into outpatient clinics enhance patient outcomes; it is therefore important that when medications are a focus of treatment in these clinics that clinical pharmacists are included in the team. At the start of the 2019/2020 financial year, the Princess Alexandra Hospital added 13 clinic pharmacist positions to their outpatient services. The aim of this study is to describe the results of a retrospective appraisal of the contents of clinical notes written by pharmacists in these outpatient clinics during the first two months. This appraisal is a preliminary investigation into the activities undertaken in these new clinic roles. A sample of notes was randomly selected from each clinic. Data included the number and type of activities undertaken by the pharmacists and the recommendations they recorded in their notes. It was found that of the 249 clinic pharmacist notes that were assessed, new patients made up 75.5% of the cohort. Recommendations were documented in 91 (37%) notes and included both dose adjustments to promote the judicious use of medicines and advice on how to withhold medications prior to surgical procedures. Although the results are preliminary, it is expected that the patients and hospital will benefit from embedding these pharmacists in these outpatient clinics; however, further research is required. Additionally, further standardisation of clinic pharmacist notes will improve future evaluation of these roles and allow for clearer conclusions to be drawn regarding the clinical benefits for patients and the hospital from the addition of clinical pharmacists in outpatient clinics.