Abstract
Objective To identify the input of specialist critical care pharmacists into patient care, promoting safe and effective medication therapy by quantifying medicines related interventions on a Neurocritical Care Unit. Setting UK 19-bedded Neurocritical Care Unit providing a tertiary referral service for Neurosurgical and Neurology patients. Method Prospective observational study of clinical pharmacist interventions conducted over a 2 week period in July 2010. Interventions were recorded, categorised and independently assessed by a panel of 5 healthcare professionals for potential patient harm if the intervention had not been made. Main outcome measure Quantity and potential severity of clinical pharmacist interventions recorded. Results 246 interventions were made in 55 patients over the 10 day observational period. A median of 7.0 (1.5; 12.0) and 2.0 (1.0; 4.0) interventions were made in Level 3 and 2 patients respectively. Mean potential severity of patient harm per intervention was 3.7 (1.12); range 0.8–7.0. Central Nervous System medicines comprised the most common therapeutic group affected (37.8%). Medication errors accounted for 87 of the 246 interventions (35.4%). Conclusion The results of the clinical pharmacist intervention evaluation demonstrated an important role for critical care pharmacists in the safe and effective use of medicines in a UK Neurocritical care unit.
References
Valentin A, Capuzzo M, Guidet B, Moreno R, Metnitz B, Bauer P, et al. Errors in administration of parenteral drugs in intensive care units: multinational prospective study. BMJ. 2009;338:b814.
The Best Medicine: The management of medicines in acute and specialist trusts. Commission for healthcare audit and inspection report, 2007. Available from the World-Wide-Web. http://www.cqc.org.uk/_db/_documents/The_Best_Medicine_acute_trust_tagged.pdf.
Allied health professionals and health care scientists. Critical care staffing guidance: Department of Health, 2003. Available from the World-Wide-Web. www.ukcpa.org/ukcpadocuments/2.pdf.
Adult critical care: Specialist pharmacy practice: Department of Health, 2005. Available from the World-Wide-Web. http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/@dh/@en/documents/digitalasset/dh_4114093.pdf.
Dean BS, Barber ND. A validated, reliable method of scoring the severity of medication errors. Am J Health Syst Pharm. 1999;56:57–62.
Levels of critical care for adult patients: Intensive Care Society, 2009. Available from the World-Wide-Web. http://www.ics.ac.uk/intensive_care_professional/standards_and_guidelines/levels_of_critical_care_for_adult_patients.
Al-Jazairi AS, Al-Agil AA, Asiri YA, Al-Kholi TA, Akhras NS, Horanieh BK. The impact of clinical pharmacist in a cardiac-surgery intensive care unit. Saudi Med J. 2008;29:277–81.
Zaidi ST, Hassan Y, Postma MJ, Ng SH. Impact of pharmacist recommendations on the cost of drug therapy in ICU patients at a Malaysian hospital. Pharm World Sci. 2003;25:299–302.
Kopp BJ, Mrsan M, Erstad BL, Duby JJ. Cost implications of and potential adverse events prevented by interventions of a critical care pharmacist. Am J Health Syst Pharm. 2007;64:2483–7.
Saokaew S, Maphanta S, Thangsomboon P. Impact of pharmacist’s interventions on cost of drug therapy in intensive care unit. Pharm Pract. 2009;7:81–7.
Acknowledgments
The authors wish to acknowledge the assistance of Miss Christine LawMin, Dr Stefan Jankowski and Sr Lynda Gunn with the panel medicine intervention assessments. They are also grateful to Dr Rob Shulman for providing the intervention record form used in the evaluation.
Funding
No special funding obtained.
Conflicts of interest
None declared.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bourne, R.S., Dorward, B.J. Clinical pharmacist interventions on a UK neurosurgical critical care unit: a 2-week service evaluation. Int J Clin Pharm 33, 755–758 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-011-9538-6
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11096-011-9538-6