Background and importance According to the European Statements of Hospital Pharmacy, the overarching goal of the hospital pharmacy service is to optimise patient outcomes through working collaboratively within multidisciplinary teams in order to achieve the responsible use of medicines across all settings. 1 A comprehensive understanding of the satisfaction of hospital staff with the pharmacy service is necessary for improving the quality of service. However, no studies assessing contentment with hospital pharmacy services have been conducted in Estonia.Aim and objectives The aim of the survey was to assess the satisfaction of hospital staff with hospital pharmacy services. Material and methods A web-based survey was conducted from November 2020 to January 2021 in public hospitals in Estonia. Two regional, one central and two general hospitals were included in the study in order to cover different types of hospitals. Respondents were asked to assess the following service areas: (1) medication dispensing and distribution, (2) compounding, (3) clinical pharmacy services and medicine information, (4) clinical trials and (5) communication. A five-point rating scale was used to assess the satisfaction with services. All hospital staff were invited to participate in the study. Results A total of 269 respondents participated in the survey; most of them were nurses (65.4%), doctors and other staff responded to a lesser extent. Overall satisfaction with hospital pharmacy services was 3.9 on a five-point scale. Satisfaction was higher in general hospitals compared to regional or central hospitals. The compounding service was rated the highest (4.2) and the medication dispensing and distribution service received the lowest score (3.7). User-friendliness of the electronic medicine ordering system, easily accessible medicine information, and communication on drug shortages were mentioned as the areas most in need of improvement. Conclusion and relevanceAlthough our survey showed that healthcare professionals and other specialists are generally satisfied with the hospital pharmacy service, there is room for improvement. We are planning to conduct the study in all Estonian hospital pharmacies with the aim of discovering the bottlenecks in pharmacy services throughout Estonia. This will enable the development of common standards and harmonise the provision of hospital pharmacy services.

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BackgroundDetection of drugs that produce prolongation of the QT interval is very important.PurposeOncological patients have an associated risk for QT prolongation due to hydroelectrolyte disturbances associated with their pathologies and the treatment received for side-effects related to antineoplasic treatment.To evaluate the prescription of drugs with a known risk for prolonging the QT interval in cancer patients. Propose treatment alternatives that improve patient safety.Material and methodsOncological patients under treatment with a tyrosine kinase inhibitor (TKI) were included. We collected the following variables: sex, age, type of tumour, analytical disturbances, history of heart disease (through left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF)) current oncological treatment and concomitant medication through Farmatools®2.5, patient interview and electronic prescription registration (Selene®).ResultsA total of 48 patients were analysed: 29 (60.4%) males and 19 (39.6%) females, with a mean age of 60±12.9 years. Of the total number of patients, 12 (25%) were diagnosed with soft tissue sarcoma; five (10.4%) with colorectal cancer; seven (14.6%) with kidney cancer; one (2.1%) with thyroid cancer; sixteen (33.3%) with non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC); one (2.1%) with non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma; four (8.3%) with breast cancer; and two (4.2%) with malignant melanoma.Patient risk factors were: females (39.58%),age >65 years (45.8%; 9% were female), electrolyte disturbances (8.3%), hepatic and renal dysfunction (12.5% respectively) and a history of heart disease (14.6%).All patients received oncologic treatment with some TKI (known risk of prolongation of the QT interval); 19 patients (39.6%) had concomitant treatment with a known risk drug; and 29 patients (60.4%) had treatment with a drug that interacted with the known risk drug. Twenty-four patients (82.7%) had potential interactions with other risk drugs, three (10.3%) had interaction with drugs that inhibited the metabolism of the known risk drug and two (6.9%) had both types of interaction.The most commonly prescribed drugs were antiemetics (22.9%), neuroleptics (8.3%) and antidepressants (. 3%).In compliance with the Oncology Department, therapeutic groups with a high risk for prolongation of the QT interval such as antidepressants, antiemetics and antipsychotics were changed to others with a lower risk of prolongation of the QT interval: in all patients taking citalopram the treatment was modified with venlafaxine, fluoxetine or sertraline (conditional risk). In all patients taking ondansetron, treatment was modified with granisetron (possible risk).ConclusionOur results are similar to those of other published studies. The prevalence detected in the prescription of drugs that prolong the QT interval is relevant, taking into account that cancer patients have a higher risk factor.Reference and/or Acknowledgements1. NEnglJMed2004;350:1013. 22. https://www.crediblemeds.orgNo conflict of interest

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