Abstract
BackgroundThe prevalence and characteristics of drug-related problems (DRPs) and factors associated with the occurrence of DRPs in the neurology unit in China remain unknown. This study aimed to determine the prevalence, characteristics and severity ratings of DRPs and identify factors associated with the occurrence of DRPs in the neurology unit of a tertiary care and academic teaching hospital in China.MethodsA retrospective study of DRPs and pharmacists’ interventions for neurology patients was performed during a non-consecutive 24-month study period. Patient demographics and clinical characteristics, and pharmacist’s intervention records were collected. The characteristics and severity ratings of DRPs were categorized using the Pharmaceutical Care Network Europe (PCNE) DRP classification tool V9.00 and the National Coordinating Council for Medication Error Reporting and Prevention (NCC-MERP) classification respectively.ResultsA total of 242 DRPs were detected for 974 admitted patients, an average of 0.25 DRPs per patient. Treatment safety was the major type of DRPs (106;43.8%) followed by treatment effectiveness (78;32.2%). The primary causes of DRPs were drug selection (124;44.1%) and dose selection (92;32.7%). Clinical pharmacists provided 525 interventions, and most interventions occurred at the prescriber level (241;45.9%). A total of 91.4% of these interventions were accepted, contributing to solving 93.0% of the identified problems. The majority of DRPs (210;86.8%) were rated at severity categories B to D (causing no patient harm). Multiple logistic regression showed that creatinine clearance, number of medications used, nasogastric feeding, diabetes, and infectious diseases were associated with more frequent DRPs (p < 0.05).ConclusionsDRPs are relatively common in the neurology unit in China, with primary causes of drug and dose selection, and clinical pharmacists can effectively reduce and prevent DRPs to optimize medication therapy.
Highlights
The prevalence and characteristics of drug-related problems (DRPs) and factors associated with the occurrence of DRPs in the neurology unit in China remain unknown
The prevention, identification and solution of DRPs constitutes the core of pharmaceutical care in which clinical pharmacists, together with the multi-disciplinary team (MDT), make an effort to improve therapeutic outcomes and the quality of life in patients [7,8,9]
Setting and study design This retrospective study was performed in the 21-bed neurology unit on patients hospitalized from Apr 1, 2018 to Sep 31, 2020 at the Southern District of Beijing Tongren Hospital affiliated to Capital Medical University, a 1759-bed tertiary care, teaching and researching institution
Summary
The prevalence and characteristics of drug-related problems (DRPs) and factors associated with the occurrence of DRPs in the neurology unit in China remain unknown. This study aimed to determine the prevalence, characteristics and severity ratings of DRPs and identify factors associated with the occurrence of DRPs in the neurology unit of a tertiary care and academic teaching hospital in China. The prevention, identification and solution of DRPs constitutes the core of pharmaceutical care in which clinical pharmacists, together with the multi-disciplinary team (MDT), make an effort to improve therapeutic outcomes and the quality of life in patients [7,8,9]. By monitoring DRPs and carrying out the appropriate interventions, clinical pharmacists play an increasingly important role in improving the efficacy and safety of medication therapy [10,11,12,13,14]
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