Pharmacist charting in the preadmission clinic of a Sydney teaching hospital: A pilot study
- Publication Type:
- Journal Article
- Citation:
- Journal of Pharmacy Practice and Research, 2017, 47 (5), pp. 375 - 382
- Issue Date:
- 2017-10-01
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| Bajorek_et_al-2017-Journal_of_Pharmacy_Practice_and_Research (2).pdf | Published Version | 184.85 kB |
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© 2017 The Society of Hospital Pharmacists of Australia. Aim: To trial a pharmacist charting service, comprising medication charting, in the preadmission clinic (PAC) at aSydney teaching hospital. Methods: A prospective pre/post-trial was conducted comprising a 1-month baseline audit and a 1-month trial of pharmacist charting (i.e. pharmacists’ preparation of patients’ medication charts during routine consultations). Purpose-designed data collection forms were used to document: pharmacist and doctor consultation times, time taken by pharmacists to prepare medication charts, and completeness and accuracy of the prescribed medication charts. A semi-structured survey was used to elicit feedback from PAC staff regarding the pharmacist charting service; the data were thematically analysed using manual, inductive coding. Results: Seventy-two medication charts were completed by PAC pharmacists during the 1-month trial. Completeness of charts improved post-intervention (5.4 vs 80.6%, p < 0.001), as did the accuracy of charts (proportion of charts with inaccuracies:41.1 vs 1.4%,p < 0.001); only one (1.4%) pharmacist-prescribed medication chart was identified as having an inaccuracy. Thechanges in mean consultation times per patient for doctors and pharmacists, respectively, changed from pre- to post-intervention as follows: pharmacists 18.9 ± 6.5 min to 20.6 ± 8.3 min (p = NS); and doctors 25.0 ± 9.6 min to 19.0 ± 6.4 min(p < 0.001). A statistically significant relationship was found between pharmacist consultation time and patients’ numbers of medications (p < 0.001) and age group (p = 0.004). Conclusion: Pharmacist charting in the PAC has been shown to improve medication chart completeness and accuracy, helping to ensure medication safety in the hospital setting. A further, long-term trial will help confirm the clinical benefits of such a service.
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