Clinical Pharmacy Services Research Articles

Evaluation of the clinical pharmacist services at a gynaecological oncology preadmission clinic

BackgroundPharmacists working in the multidisciplinary gynaecological oncology pre-admission clinic (PAC) are involved in the perioperative assessment of patients for a comprehensive medication history and information provision regarding withholding of medications before surgery. ObjectiveTo evaluate the current services provided by pharmacists to multidisciplinary staff and patients attending the PAC. MethodsA staff and a patient feedback survey on the value and impact of PAC pharmacy services were distributed within the PAC. The impact of the PAC pharmacist was also assessed by analysing pharmacist interventions and key performance indicators documented. ResultsFifteen staff responses were recorded, 5 nursing staff, 2 midwives and 8 anaesthetists. Eighty-seven percent (n = 13) strongly agreed or agreed that pharmacists at PAC help reduce medication errors on admission. Staff strongly agreed 73% (n = 11) pharmacists obtain a more accurate medication history. Staff reported benefits in having a pharmacist at the clinic to discuss medication related questions with 87% (n = 13) strongly agreeing or agreeing with the statement. A staff overall satisfaction rating of 4.87 out of 5 was recorded. In the patient survey, respondents (n = 6) gave a 4.83 out of 5 rating in confidence in making changes to their medication and their overall satisfaction with the service provided. In reviewing data from January to June 2022, the number of patients seen by the pharmacist were 178 of 681 patients (26.1%) who attended the clinic. The most common medications involved in the pharmacist intervention include those that were advised to be withheld and those that required other changes to therapy prior to their procedure. ConclusionThe role of a PAC pharmacist can be greatly appreciated by the multidisciplinary team and patients. Pharmacist interventions and key performance indicators have demonstrated the important activities of clinical pharmacy services in the PAC in optimising patient care in medication management.

Clinical Pharmacy Services Enhanced by Electronic Health Record (EHR) Access: An Innovation Narrative.

Patient care in the community pharmacy setting is often hindered due to limited access to adequate patient health information (PHI). Various studies suggest that lack of access to PHI is a main reason for delay in pharmaceutical care, medication dispensing errors, and lacking interprofessional relationships between prescribers and pharmacists. Literature has shown that interprofessional collaboration and improved access to PHI can improve transitions of care and communication for pharmacists, but literature is sparse on implementation of electronic health record (HER) access within independent community pharmacies. This observational study follows implementation of HER access into a rural community pharmacy to enhance common clinical services carried out by pharmacy staff. Metrics include number of enhanced consultations by pharmacy staff, type of consultations provided, potential reimbursement, decreased need to follow up with other providers, potential for decreased time to treatment or refills, and aspects of EHR most utilized during search. Two-hundred sixty three patients' profiles were assessed, with 164 (62.4%) deemed appropriate for EHR access and searching. Most interventions made were related to cardiovascular, endocrinologic, neuropsychiatric, and COVID-19 therapy medications. EHR access in community pharmacy has the potential to improve both the quality and availability of clinical patient interventions through enhanced knowledge of PHI.

HSD86 Contribution of Clinical Pharmacy Services to the Achievement of Diabetes and Hypertension-Related Quality Measures Among Medicare Patients

HSD86 Contribution of Clinical Pharmacy Services to the Achievement of Diabetes and Hypertension-Related Quality Measures Among Medicare Patients

Initial observations on the impact of implementation of a seven-day clinical pharmacy service on dispensary activity and performance

Abstract Introduction The need for seven-day clinical pharmacy services is widely acknowledged, although limited, in the acute sector of the National Health Service.1,2 Timely medicine supply is integral to provision of improved clinical pharmacy services to patients across seven-days, and is essential in effective discharge planning. There is a paucity of evidence for implementation of seven-day clinical pharmacy services, including the impact of service transformation on dispensary activity and performance. This limits planning and development of seven-day pharmacy services. Aim To assess the impact of a seven-day clinical pharmacy service on dispensary activity and performance, at the main site of a tertiary-referral teaching hospital. Methods A seven-day clinical pharmacy service was implemented in October 2021. Prior to this, pharmacy services were largely dispensary-based with clinical pharmacy services for acute and neurosciences admission and limited ward-based services in other specialities. At implementation, clinical pharmacy technicians and pharmacists (n=16) provided patient-facing pharmaceutical care for 7.5-hours/day across all specialities over the weekend; this included medicines reconciliation, preparation of discharge-medication lists, independent prescribing, counselling and clinical review of prioritised patients. The weekend dispensary staffing, skill-mix and shift patterns were redesigned to facilitate staff release from the dispensary rota. Dispensing activity data were obtained from Ascribe for six months pre- and post-implementation (April 2021-March 2022). Data were categorised as inpatient/discharge and the mean number of items dispensed per month analysed using Microsoft Excel. Discharge turnaround performance was calculated as percentage of discharge prescriptions dispensed within two-hours of dispensary receipt and obtained from the Prescription Tracking System. Verbal staff feedback was sought 4-months post-implementation. The study was deemed a service evaluation by the Pharmacy Research and Audit Group and so ethical approval was not required. Results Twelve dispensing staff and one pharmacist were rostered to one of three daily 3.75-hour dispensary shift patterns. Following implementation, mean total inpatient dispensing activity increased from 12799 to 13250 items/month (3.5% increase) and mean weekend activity from 2184 to 2677 items/month (22.6% increase). Mean weekday inpatient activity was stable at 10615 to 10573 items/month. The mean discharge dispensing activity increased from 9065 to 9837 items/month (8.5% increase): mean weekday discharge from 8498 to 8622 items/month (1.5% increase); mean weekend activity from 569 to 1215 items/month (114% increase). Discharge turnaround performance remained stable with 85% discharge prescriptions dispensed within 2-hours, versus 84% pre-implementation. Weekday performance also remained stable - from 84% to 83% and the weekend performance increased from 85% to 92%. Dispensary staff fed-back that weekend shift patterns were effective, activity was manageable and shifts usually ran smoothly and finished on time. Discussion/Conclusion Introduction of a seven-day clinical pharmacy service led to an increase in weekend dispensary activity, which was not offset by decrease in weekday activity. Importantly, the dispensary performance was not negatively impacted and weekend discharge performance improved. Increases could be because of weekend medicines reconciliation, pro-active medication ordering and pharmacist-led preparation of discharge-medicine lists. Dispensary activity in Winter 2020 was atypical because of COVID-19, thus it was not feasible to compare data. Further review, including 12 months data would reduce impact of seasonal variations in NHS activity. Limitations include that patient data including length of stay and time to discharge were not within scope.

THE ROLE OF PHARMACISTS IN MINIMIZING MEDICATION ERRORS IN THE NEONATAL INTENSIVE CARE UNIT: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW

Background: Hospitalized pediatrics, especially neonates, are more prone to excessive medication errors. Implementation of pharmacy services shows a decline in medication errors in hospitals and clinics. In this study, we aimed to demonstrate the role of pharmacists in reducing medication errors in hospitalized neonates Methods: The systematic review of the literature was undertaken through the PubMed database from 2002 to 2022. The search MESH terms were multiple combinations of Medication error, Clinical pharmacist, Clinical pharmacy services, Infant & newborn. Afterward, the results were filtered to include the role of pharmacy services in preventing medication errors for the inpatient neonatal population Results: a total of 15 articles were eligible to be included in the current review, comprising neonatal or whole pediatric population, including neonates. The primary pharmacy interventions were prescription auditing, identification of medication errors, changing preparation and administration, medication reconciliation, educating healthcare workers, and developing policies Conclusions: Our systematic review illustrated that pharmacists integration with other healthcare teams could help minimize medication errors before reaching neonates.

Clinical pharmacy service evaluation of hepatology services at a large tertiary centre

Abstract Introduction Kings College Hospital (KCH) provides tertiary level care to patients with liver disease across the UK. These patients are often under the joint care of primary and/or secondary care centres. As a result, several medications related enquires are received from patients and healthcare professionals including, doctors, nurses, and pharmacists to continue and optimise pharmacotherapy. The KCH liver pharmacy team does not provide a formal medicines information service, although a large amount of pharmacy resource is used to provide high level medicines information locally, regionally, and nationally by the team. In addition, significant time and input is provided in optimising access to hospital only medication. Aim To describe activities conducted by a specialist clinical pharmacy team out with an inpatient or formal outpatient setting which contribute to medicines optimisation and improve access to specialist medication. Methods Retrospective data collection was carried out over 2 separate four-week periods in November 2020 and November 2021 by the specialist liver pharmacy team. The data was analysed on an 8-week average using Microsoft Excel. Ethical approval was not required as this is a service evaluation data collection. Results Over eight weeks, the specialist clinical pharmacy team (pharmacists and pharmacy technicians) received 206 queries, of which (72%) were received by email and (28%) by phone. The team spends an average of 15 hours per week on clinical activities outside of formal inpatient and outpatient settings. Most of the queries received were from patients (64%), followed by healthcare professionals including doctors (11%), nurses (9.5%), and pharmacy staff (7.7%). The clinical interventions made by the team included supply of medications (37%), prescribing events (36%) and medicines intervention (20%) which included drug selection, administration, optimisation, deprescribing, therapeutic drug monitoring, drug-drug interaction, transfer of care and advice given following adverse drug reactions. Discussion/Conclusion The ease of accessibility to the specialist clinical pharmacy team plays a significant role in providing access to specialist medications to patients and a positive impact on other healthcare services, including decreasing the burden upon primary care. A structured medicines information line provided by the specialist team would be effective for patients and healthcare professionals as the specialist team spends substantial amount of time providing medicines intervention and medicines information. The involvement of specialist pharmacy technicians in medicines information services and interventions, provides an opportunity for role development and up-skill the pharmacy technician role in a specialist team. A formal and structured medicine information service for hepatology by the specialist clinical pharmacy team should be considered to improve access to specialist medication and medicines optimisation.

English

The National Department of Health identified the need for Universal Health Coverage, highlighting improved access to quality healthcare in South Africa.Clinical pharmacists play a vital role in various settings, including medication safety, therapeutic drug monitoring and antimicrobial stewardship. Healthcare-related key performance indicators measures quality that ensure accountability, improve patient safety and assist decision-making. To understand the perceptions of pharmacists regarding education, barriers and outcome measures on practices of clinical pharmacy, this study employed qualitative research, with focus-group discussions and in-depth interviews.Dialogue from interviews and focus-groups were audio-taped, transcribed and stored as MS-Word™ documents.  NVivo® were utilised to identify themes.Pseudo-names ensured participant confidentiality.Ethics approval was obtained from the Sefako Makgatho University Research and Ethics committee, participating private-healthcare groups and Government Research Offices. Pharmacists were interviewed in eight provinces, identifying seven themes. The majority of pharmacists felt that notable differences exist between the scope of practice of ward- and clinical pharmacists. Most pharmacists did not know the definition of pharmaceutical care.The consensus was that clinical functions require more in-depth work than functions by general pharmacists. All pharmacists experienced barriers to performing their functions. Mostly outcome measures used by pharmacists pertain to antimicrobial stewardship, pharmacists felt that additional training is necessary to perform clinical functions. Clinical work is considered more intense and requires greater involvement in multidisciplinary teams. The study contributes to the state of clinical pharmacy in South Africa.  It provides insight into the different levels of clinical pharmacy practice. The findings provide insights into the implementation of Clinical pharmacy services in developing countries. Key words: Clinical pharmacy, pharmaceutical care, barriers, outcome measures.

Review Artikel: Standar Pelaksanaan Pelayanan Farmasi Klinik di Apotek Berdasarkan Permenkes Nomor 73 Tahun 2016 di Indonesia

Pharmaceutical services are exclusive and responsible services to patients related to the use of pharmaceutical preparations. Pharmaceutical services have the goal of being able to achieve definite results in order to improve the quality of life of patients. The pharmacy was established as a pharmaceutical service facility that provides medicines and medical devices with guaranteed quality and safety. Clinical pharmacy services are the core of pharmacy practice services, especially by pharmacists who are responsible for pharmaceutical services in pharmacies. This study aims as material for consideration of data analysis of pharmaceutical services in pharmacies by pharmacists, especially in the PIO (Drug Information Services), Pharmacy Counseling and Treatment at Home section according to Permenkes No 73 of 2016. This study used the literature method. search on research journals, 25 research journals published from 2017-2022. The results of the study show that most of the pharmaceutical services by pharmacists in pharmacies are in accordance with Permenkes No 73 of 2016.

Clinical pharmacy services are reimbursed in Germany: challenges of real world implementation remain

Over the last two decades, community pharmacy has experienced major changes as the role of pharmacists is evolving from a product to a service and a patient focus. As part of this change, new and innovative clinical pharmacy services aimed at improving medicines use and patient outcomes have been designed, both nationally and internationally. Since June 2022, five services are reimbursed by all statutory health insurance funds and private insurance companies in Germany: medication review for patients with polymedication; blood pressure control in hypertension; assuring proper inhalation techniques for patients receiving a new device or a device change; medication review including a follow-up for patients taking oral anticancer drugs or immunosuppressants post-transplantation. Beyond reimbursement, the upscaling and sustainable provision of these professional services are now the main challenges. Implementation research will provide important information for the further development of pharmaceutical care programs.

The role of the clinical pharmacist in the prevention of drug-induced acute kidney injury in the intensive care unit.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a disorder that is commonly seen in patients in the intensive care unit (ICU) and has a detrimental impact on the patients' clinical prognosis. Although a variety of factors contribute to the development of AKI in patients, drug-induced AKI is a common occurrence in the ICU. With the widespread availability of clinical pharmacy services, the clinical pharmacist's consultation service to the healthcare team aids in the resolution of drug-related issues and the enhancement of therapeutic outcomes. The involvement of a clinical pharmacist in the ICU team is expected to minimize the incidence of drug-induced AKI and enhance therapeutic results. Therefore, the goal of our study was to demonstrate the impact of having a clinical pharmacist on the occurrence, stages, and treatment of AKI. The study included two patient groups: intervention (n=75) (IG) and control (n=75) (CG) groups. The clinical pharmacist has made recommendations to the ICU team regarding the treatment of IG patients on drug selection, drug administration routes, drug dose adjustment, drug-drug interactions, drug-food or nutritional solution interactions, drug side effect management, and drug incompatibility. No interventions were provided by the clinical pharmacist in the CG patients. The clinical pharmacist visited patients regularly and noted the laboratory findings and pharmacological treatments of patients in the study groups on the patient follow-up forms. The obtained data of IG and CG were compared and statistical methods were used to assess them. According to our findings, AKI was found to be more common in CG than in IG (p < 0.05). Stage 1 was shown to be the most common AKI stage in the patients (p > 0.05). The gap between the patients' highest Cr and basal sCr values was less in IG (p < 0.05). When the association between reasons for ICU admission and AKI was investigated, pulmonary edema and acute respiratory failure were found to have a significant and positive relationship with AKI (p < 0.05). Furthermore, it was shown that patients with diabetes and cancer comorbidities were the most vulnerable to developing AKI (p < 0.05). Antibiotics, anaesthetics, and cardiovascular system medication categories were found to have a significant and positive correlation with AKI in patients (p < 0.05). Also, it was revealed that the usage of vancomycin, colistin, ampicillin-sulbactam, clarithromycin, ceftriaxone, midazolam, and dexketoprofen caused AKI (p < 0.05). Our findings demonstrate that if a clinical pharmacist is included in the ICU team and provides consultation services to the ICU team regarding patient treatment by performing regular patient follow-up, the incidence of AKI in patients can be minimized and therapeutic outcomes can be improved.

Development, implementation and evaluation of a seven-day clinical pharmacy service in a tertiary referral teaching hospital during surge-2 of the COVID-19 pandemic

BackgroundSeven-day clinical pharmacy services in the acute sector of the National Health Service are limited. There is a paucity of evidential patient benefit. This limits investment and infrastructure, despite United Kingdom wide calls.AimTo optimise medicines seven-days a week during surge-2 of the COVID-19 pandemic through implementation of a seven-day clinical pharmacy service. This paper describes service development, evaluation and sustainability.SettingA tertiary-referral teaching hospital, London, United Kingdom.DevelopmentThe seven-day clinical pharmacy service was developed to critical care, acute and general medical patients. Clinical leads developed the service specification and defined priorities, targeting complex patients and transfer of care. Contributing staff were briefed and training materials developed.ImplementationThe service was implemented in January 2021 for 11 weeks. Multidisciplinary team communication brought challenges; strategies were employed to overcome these.EvaluationA prospective observational study was conducted in intervention wards over two weekends in February 2021. 1584 beds were occupied and 602 patients included. 346 interventions were reported and rated; 85.6% had high or moderate impact; 56.7% were time-critical.The proportion of medicines reconciliation within 24-h of admission was analysed across the hospital between November 2020 and May 2021. During implementation, patients admitted Friday-Sunday were more likely to receive medicines reconciliation within 24-h (RR 1.41 (95% CI 1.34–1.47), p < 0.001). Rostered services were delivered sustainably in terms of shift-fill rate and medicines reconciliation outcome.ConclusionSeven-day clinical pharmacy services benefit patient outcome through early medicines reconciliation and intervention. Investment to permanently embed the service was sustained.

Association of education background with clinical pharmacists’ clinical pharmacy workload in tertiary hospitals of China

BackgroundWorkload of healthcare providers may affect the quality of healthcare. Practical evidences have indicated that healthcare providers are differentially associated with workload due to their different education and training background. Clinical pharmacists are an indispensable part of medical teams. Under the precondition that clinical pharmacists in China generally undertake uneven clinical pharmacy workload, the relationship of workload and clinical pharmacists’ different education backgrounds remains unclear. This study aimed to assess the association between the education background of clinical pharmacists and their clinical pharmacy workload in China.MethodsA field questionnaire survey using a stratified sampling was conducted to gather data on education background and clinical pharmacy workload through a self-developed instrument. Ordinary least squares regression was used to evaluate the association of the participants’ education background with their clinical pharmacy workload.ResultsA total of 625 clinical pharmacists from 311 tertiary hospitals in China participated. Two levels of education: less than bachelor’s degree in general pharmacy, or doctoral degree in clinical pharmacy was associated significantly with clinical pharmacy workload of the participants. Participants who had credentials of national level and provincial-level specialized training for clinical pharmacists had undertaken more work than those without. Moreover, the participants’ specialized field, such as respiratory medicine and nephrology, was associated with their clinical pharmacy workload.ConclusionEnhancing several aspects of education or training among clinical pharmacists in tertiary hospitals in China may help improve their capability to provide clinical pharmacy services. Efforts are needed to improve the education and training system of clinical pharmacists in China.

ASHP Honorary Membership Award.

Clifford Hynniman Kurt Kleinmann Clifford E. Hynniman, MS, FKSHP, and Kurt Kleinmann, MS, were awarded honorary lifetime ASHP memberships in 2022 in recognition of their outstanding contributions to pharmacy practice. Hynniman is associate professor emeritus at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy in Lexington. He launched his career at the college as coprincipal investigator of a seminal study demonstrating that hospitalwide deployment of a unit dose drug distribution system reduced medication errors. He was a member of the faculty for 38 years until his retirement in 2006. Throughout his career, Hynniman championed leadership development to support the advancement of pharmacy practice and demonstrate the profession’s contributions to patient care. From 1972 to 1985, Hynniman maintained an appointment as field professor at the University of Kentucky College of Pharmacy while serving as director of pharmacy for Norton Children’s Hospitals (now Norton Healthcare) in Louisville. His many accomplishments at the hospital include establishing the region’s first 24-hour pharmacy service, launching an accredited 24-hour poison control center, and implementing clinical pharmacy services and a pharmacy residency program.

Directions of Changes in the Profession of Hospital Pharmacist in Poland.

The Act on the Pharmacist Profession, adopted on 10 December 2020, is a breakthrough for the entire community of pharmacists in Poland. Due to the scope of the changes introduced in the Act, the question is whether pharmacists in Poland are suitably prepared for pharmaceutical care and clinical pharmacy services. The main aim of the study is to assess the readiness of hospital pharmacists to introduce changes in the way the profession functions. The result of the study is the presentation of the concept of a new model of pharmacist functioning in healthcare entities and the indication of actions necessary to carry out such a change. The questionnaire was addressed to all hospital pharmacists in Poland. Two hundred and seventy-seven hospital pharmacists were included in the research. The analysis of the data revealed that almost all (96.1%) respondents indicated the need to introduce changes to the model of functioning of pharmacists in medical entities. Two-thirds of pharmacists declared readiness to start work to introduce changes. Hospital pharmacists recognize the importance of clinical pharmacy in their current practice; however, the biggest barrier is the lack of financing, an insufficient number of staff, a lack of knowledge and skills, and a lack of tools to use the service.

Physicians' and advanced practice providers' perceptions of the impact of embedded clinical pharmacists on the work environment in ambulatory care clinics.

Clinical pharmacists are recognized as valuable team members in primary care clinics due to the variety of patient care services they provide. This study examined nonpharmacist healthcare providers' perceptions of how embedded clinical pharmacists impact the work environment in ambulatory care clinics. This was an exploratory mixed methods study consisting of semistructured interviews and a subsequent survey. Participants included attending and resident physicians, and advanced practice providers (APPs) practicing in clinics with an embedded clinical pharmacist. Coded interview transcripts were analyzed to identify themes that were used to develop a survey. Interview participants were not asked to complete the survey. Survey responses were analyzed utilizing descriptive statistics. Subgroup analysis assessed for differences in responses based on provider type, gender, clinical practice area, years of practice, and pharmacy services utilization. Fourteen physicians and APPs participated in the semistructured interviews, and 43 other providers completed the survey. In the interviews, participants stated the clinical pharmacist contributed positively in terms of work environment, workload, work-related stress, and burnout. The major themes identified were sharing patient care responsibilities, saving provider time, and being a knowledgeable resource. Survey responses were consistent with interview statements; however, the positive impact differed between nonusers and moderate to high utilizers of clinical pharmacy services. The main barrier to collaborating with clinical pharmacists was their limited availability. Embedded clinical pharmacists positively impact the work environment in ambulatory care clinics by reducing provider workload, work-related stress, and burnout. Participants also noted clinical pharmacists are a trusted resource for patient care and drug information questions.

Long-term care professionals' views on pharmacists: a qualitative study using Role Theory.

BackgroundQualitative research investigating pharmacists’ participation in Long-Term Care (LTC) within interdisciplinary teams is scarce.AimTo characterize how pharmacists’ participation in a national network of LTC is perceived by healthcare professionals and other key stakeholders.MethodIndividual, in-depth, semi-structured interviews of participants (nurses, physicians, pharmacists, and LTC researchers) enrolled purposively or through snowballing sampling techniques, with the final sample being comprised of fourteen participants. Data analysis followed a deductive coding approach framed by Role Theory and supplemented with an inductive coding for additional themes.ResultsFour Role Theory constructs were identified from the primary data—role identity, overqualification, ambiguity, underqualification. Clinical pharmacy services, logistics and educational activities were pointed out as representing the identity of pharmacists’ interventions. Despite the clear identification of LTC pharmacists’ interventions, pharmacist expertise on medicine optimization seemed to be underused (role overqualification), as a result of lack of time, lower proactivity in healthcare teams’ integration, and the absence of a legal framework targeted to LTC pharmacy practice (role ambiguity). Additional clinical training, including in the management of older people’s health conditions, nutrition, and palliative care were missing (role underqualification).ConclusionLTC pharmacists can provide essential services (e.g., clinical pharmacy, logistics, educational interventions), although additional training and a clearer legal framework are missing to better define pharmacists’ roles in LTC pharmacy practice.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s11096-022-01482-9.

A retrospective analysis of pharmacotherapy in Kazakhstan: Assessment of the rational prescription and use of antibiotics in the nephrology department of a multidisciplinary hospital

&lt;b&gt;Introduction:&lt;/b&gt; The rapid development of the pharmaceutical industry has increased the need to assess and monitor the use of medicines. Thus, necessitates the importance of monitoring the appropriate use of medicines including antimicrobials.&lt;br /&gt; &lt;b&gt;Objective:&lt;/b&gt; Pharmacoeconomic analysis of pharmacotherapy in the nephrology department at a multidisciplinary hospital.&lt;br /&gt; &lt;b&gt;Methods&lt;/b&gt;: The study is a retrospective analysis of medicine use and expenditure. The study utilized the ABC-VEN analysis of medical use and the WHO-AWaRe-2021 analysis of antibiotic use, to determine the prescription and financial trends of the nephrology department (30 beds) of a multidisciplinary regional hospital (total 844 beds) in Turkestan, Kazakhstan 2018-2021.&lt;br /&gt; &lt;b&gt;Results:&lt;/b&gt; The analyzed costs of drugs included 116 international nonproprietary names prescribed to patients from the nephrology department during the study period. In total, pharmacotherapy costs increased by 52.6% in 2021 compared to 2018. Five INN drugs were purchased without their inclusion in the Kazakhstan National Medicinal Formulary, such as atropine sulfate, sodium bicarbonate, sodium chloride (crystalline salt), nitroxoline, and nitrofural. The pharmacoeconomics analysis of antibiotics usage for 2018-2021 showed a sharp increase in the%age of costs.&lt;br /&gt; &lt;b&gt;Conclusion:&lt;/b&gt; The study showed an increase in funding for pharmacotherapy in the department of nephrology, which increases the availability of medicines. However, the trend in prescribing drugs with poor evidence base level, and the increase in the proportion of antibiotic prescription, require immediate intervention including the utilization of clinical pharmacy services for regular assessment of the pharmacoeconomic feasibility of antibiotic therapy. This will improve the quality of medical care and reduce the financial costs.

The Time is Now for Mental Health Care: Evaluating the Impact of a Clinical Pharmacist on an Acute Mental Health Unit.

Clinical pharmacists have a significant role in optimizing pharmacotherapy for patients admitted to acute care settings. Patients with mental health disorders are especially vulnerable to polypharmacy, adverse drug effects, medication nonadherence, and misconceptions about medication use. The Royal University Hospital in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, currently lacks resources to provide optimal clinical pharmacy coverage for mental health inpatients. To determine the optimal clinical role for a pharmacist providing specialized care to mental health inpatients and to evaluate the potential impact of the pharmacist on medication use and patient care. A pharmacist with 5 years of mental health-related pharmacy practice experience was temporarily assigned to the Mental Health Short Stay Unit as a practical component of a Master's program in pharmacy. Clinical activities to be completed by the pharmacist were defined on the basis of available evidence, existing performance and quality assurance indicators, and prior experience. The pharmacist's activities and recommendations during each shift were tracked and reported. The pharmacist saw 94 patients over a total of 88 hours. The pharmacist made a total of 61 recommendations, of which 55 (90%) were accepted by the psychiatrist, and initiated 42 medication changes. Forty-one patients (44%) received a thorough medication assessment, and individualized, often specialized, education was provided to patients 39 times. The pharmacist was consulted by the psychiatrist 19 times. Pharmacists have an important role in medication management and patient education for psychiatric inpatients, and the health care team values pharmacists' unique expertise. Additional resources dedicated to defining and expanding clinical pharmacy services on inpatient psychiatry units could further optimize patient care.

Clinical Pharmacist Interventions in Intensive Care Units during Hajj

Background: Hajj pilgrimage is the largest mass gathering worldwide. The Saudi Ministry of Health (MOH) provides free medical services for all pilgrimages. In 2022, MOH incorporated clinical pharmacy services in intensive care units (ICUs) of the sacred rituals hospitals. In addition to their role in ICUs settings, they were involved in other activities related to emergency department admissions as well as conducting several educational services at the hospital level. This study aimed to describe the impact of clinical pharmacy services implementation during the Hajj season and to explore the clinical interventions delivered to ICU patients. Materials and Methods: A multicenter-retrospective, chart-review study including adult critically ill patients (&gt;14 years old) admitted to ICUs of seven sacred rituals hospitals between June 30 and July 14, 2022. Patients were excluded if they were not admitted to the ICU or admitted to an area with no assigned clinical pharmacist. Clinical interventions were categorized based on a modified version of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists (ASHP) categorization. The study was approved by MOH Central Institutional Review Board (IRB) on September 18, 2022 (Ref. 22-41 E). Results: Clinical pharmacists performed 269 interventions for 82 patients admitted to the ICUs of participating hospitals. Each patient had a median of three interventions (interquartile range 2–5). The most common intervention was the untreated indication (n = 93; 34.5%), followed by dose adjustment (n = 60; 22.3%) and improper drug selection (n = 42; 15.6%). The ICU teams ultimately accepted all interventions. Conclusion: Incorporating clinical pharmacy services into ICU settings during Hajj season optimized patient care. The variety of provided clinical interventions shows the impact of clinical pharmacists’ presence among multidisciplinary teams. Further studies are needed to explore the economic implication of clinical pharmacist services during Hajj.

Factors influencing prescribing by critical care physicians to heart failure patients in Egypt: a cross-sectional survey

BackgroundHeart failure (HF) guideline-led prescribing improves patient outcomes; however, little is known about the factors influencing guideline-led prescribing in critical care settings. This study used a cross-sectional survey to assess the factors that influence physicians when prescribing to heart failure patients in a critical care setting in Egypt.ResultsThe response rate was 54.8%. The international HF guidelines were the primary source of prescribing information for 84.2% of respondents. Staff were more familiar with the latest guideline recommendations than associate staff (86.7% vs 36.8%, p = 0.012) and considered patient’s perspectives more often (86.7% vs 26.3%, p = 0.036). Renal function was the clinical factor that most frequently influenced the prescribing of loop diuretics or renin–angiotensin–aldosterone system inhibitors. Pulmonary function influenced beta-blockers prescription. The most frequently cited barrier to guideline-led prescribing was the absence of locally drafted guidelines. A majority of prescribers agreed that implementation of clinical pharmacy services, physician education and electronic reminders may improve the implementation of guideline-led prescribing.ConclusionsAlthough experienced physicians are familiar with and use international guidelines, physicians would welcome local guidance on HF prescribing and greater clinical pharmacist input.