Background/aim
Most of the hospitalized patients are on a number of drugs for comorbidities and/or to prevent nosocomial infections. This necessitates a careful consideration of drug interactions not only to avoid possible toxicities but also to reach the highest efficiency with drug treatment. We aimed to investigate drug interactions related to systemic antibiotic use and compare three different databases to check for drug interactions while characterizing the main differences between medical and surgical departments.
Materials and methods
This point prevalence study covered data on 927 orders for patients hospitalized between June 3 and 10, 2018 in Ankara University Hospitals. Systemic antibiotic use and related drug interactions were documented using UptoDate, Drugs, and Medscape and comparisons between the departments of medical and surgical sciences were made.
Results
The number of orders, or the number of drugs or antibiotics per order were not different between the medical and surgical sciences departments. A total of 1335 antibiotic-related drug interactions of all levels were reported by one, two, or all three databases. UptoDate reported all common and major interactions. Pantoprazole was the most commonly prescribed drug and appeared in 63% of all orders. Among 75 different molecules, ceftriaxone and meropenem were the two most prescribed antibiotics by the surgical and medical departments, respectively.
Conclusion
A dramatic variance existed amongst antibiotics prescribed by different departments. This indicated the requirement for a centralized role of an infectious diseases specialist. Especially for the hospitalized patient, prophylactic coverage with at least one antibiotic brought about a number of drug interactions. A precise evaluation of orders in terms of drug interactions by a clinical pharmacist (currently none on duty) will reduce possible drug-related hazards.
Objective: Pharmacists have important roles in pharmaceutical care practices. In this study, it was aimed to investigate the potential benefits of the presence of a pharmacist in PHCs (Primary Health Care) in addition to other health care specialists in Ankara Kecioren Karargahtepe PHC and Ankara Ayas PHC.Material and Method: This study is a quasi-experimental type of study which includes a pre-test and a post-test. Pre-test was given to patients by two pharmacists, which was followed by a basic education on hypertension and its treatment. A post-test was done three months after the pre-test in order to assess the efficiency of the education.Result and Discussion: In total, 103 patients (70.9% female; mean age: 62.84 ± 10.44 years) were analysed before and after receiving counselling from two pharmacists. The results of pre-and post-tests were analyzed by Wilcoxon t-test using SPSS 23.0. As a result of the statistical analysis, the education provided by the pharmacists enhanced the mean patient scores significantly (T0 (pre-test) = 6 (5-7), T1 (post-test) = 8 (6-9); P ˂ 0.05). This study revealed the active role and the requirement of the presence of a pharmacist in addition to other health care providers in PHCs.
Background
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a major public health concern due to its high mortality risk, high hospitalization rates and cost, and low life expectancy. Thus, CKD patients are among patient group that may benefit from clinical pharmacy services the most.
Methods
This was a prospective interventional study conducted between October 1, 2019, and March 18, 2020, in the nephrology ward of Ankara University School of the Medicine, Ibn-i Sina Hospital. DRPs were classified according to PCNE v8.03. The main outcomes were interventions proposed and the rate of acceptance by the physicians.
Results
269 pre-dialysis patients were included to determine DRPs during the treatment process of the patients. 205 DRPs were found in 131 (48.7%) patients. Treatment efficacy was found to be the main type of DRPs (56.2%) followed by treatment safety (39.6%). When patients with and without DRPs were compared, it was found that the number of female patients (55.0%) was higher in the group with DRPs (p < 0.05). The length of hospital stays (11.3 ± 7.7) and the mean number of drugs used (9.6 ± 3.6) in the group with DRPs were significantly higher than those without DRPs (9.3 ± 5.9; 8.1 ± 3.5, respectively) (p < 0.05). 91.7% of the interventions were accepted by the physicians, and patients and found clinically beneficial. 71.7% of DRPs were fully resolved, 1.9% partially resolved and 23.4% could not be resolved.
Conclusions
A high prevalence of DRPs in patients with chronic kidney disease was determined during therapy. Clinical pharmacist interventions were highly accepted by the physicians and patients. This may indicate implementation of clinical pharmacy services in the nephrology ward has a great impact on optimized therapy and prevention DRPs.
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