Abstract
Background A frail patient is an immobilised person and/or a nursing home resident and/or in a terminal stage. This population is hyper-frequent in primary health care (PHC) centres and hospitals. This group generates large expenses in drugs and they usually need a nasogastric tube (NGT). Purpose To evaluate the implementation of pharmacy assistance for frail patients with NGT after hospital discharge. Material and methods Prospective study conducted between June and September 2014. Sequence of activities: a physician or nurse selected the patients who require pharmaceutical intervention to guarantee the correct administration of drugs via NGT, compatibility with enteral nutrition and stability of solid solutions or dispersions of drugs. A report with recommendations, substitutions and interruptions of treatments was issued to the patient. Variables: age, drugs per patient, therapeutic group (TG) according to the Anatomical Therapeutic Chemical (ATC) classification system and active substances with submitted recommendations and levels of approval. Sources of information: electronic medical history (DIRAYA), electronic prescription program (APD – ATHOS) and specialised bibliography. Data was analysed using SPSS 15.0. Results 23 requests were received. The mean age of the patients was 81.65 (± 8.97) years. The mean of prescribed drugs per patient was 8 (2–19). 75% (138/184) of the patients required specific recommendations (a mean of 6 drugs per patient). The most common TGs were related to the nervous system 29.71% (41) and the cardiovascular system 25.36% (35). The most frequent active principles were: omeprazole 9.42% (13) and acetylsalicylic acid 5.8% (8). 100% of the recommendations were accepted. Conclusion This system guarantees a constant information flow between PHC centres and hospitals that will avoid problems and guarantee correct drug administration. Future studies will show the economic impact and the improvement in the quality of life with the reduction of visits to PHC centres and hospitals. References and/or Acknowledgements None. No conflict of interest.
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