Abstract
ObjectiveTo describe, analyze and compare the situation of pharmaceutical care consultations for outpatients with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases of the Pharmacy Services of Spain at two different times. MethodLongitudinal, multicenter and unidisciplinary descriptive observational study, carried out by the Immune-mediated Inflammatory Diseases Working Group of the Spanish Society of Hospital Pharmacy through a virtual survey in 2019 and 2021. Variables were collected regarding coordination, resources, biosimilars, unmet needs and telepharmacy. Numerical results were presented in absolute value and percentage and free text responses were grouped by topic areas. To compare the results between the two collection times, the Chi-Square test was used with a significance level of p<0.05. ResultsThe level of participation was 70 pharmacists in 2019 and 53 in 2021. The main significant findings obtained were an increase in participation in asthma biologic committees (p=0.044) and care coordination in dermatology (p=0.003) and digestive system (p=0.022). The wide use of biosimilar biological medicines stood out, with a 15% increase in the exchange of the reference biological to the biosimilar. The lack of research in the field and insufficient human resources, among other unmet needs, were revealed. In the outpatient units, the use of the stratification model of the MAPEX project was a minority and an increase in the use of information and communication technologies was promoted. Motivated by the pandemic derived from COVID-19, telepharmacy was established for the first time in 85% of the centers, maintaining the service at 66% at the time of the second survey. ConclusionsOutpatient units are undergoing constant change to adapt to new times, for which institutional support is needed to invest more resources to promote the development of strategies to reduce unmet needs. We must continue working to achieve a pharmaceutical practice that provides efficiency, safety, quality of life and access to innovative drugs in patients with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases.
Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callSimilar Papers
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
