The effect of pharmacists on ward rounds measured by the STOPP/START tool in a specialized geriatric unit.
J Clin Pharm Ther
; 42(2): 178-184, 2017 Apr.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-27981600
ABSTRACT
WHAT IS KNOWN AND OBJECTIVE:
The STOPP/START tool has been validated to assess elderly patients for potentially inappropriate prescribing. This study aimed to assess the effect of inclusion of a pharmacist on a physician-led ward round on potentially inappropriate prescribing in hospitalized elderly patients.METHODS:
This was an observational study of prescribing for patients using the STOPP/START tool at three points during hospital stay; admission to hospital, on transfer to the specialized geriatric unit and on discharge from hospital. Data were collected over 4 months pre- and post-introduction of a pharmacist to a physician-led ward round. Demographic and clinical data, including total number of medications and STOPP/START criteria met, were collected. The mean number of STOPP/START criteria at each time-point was compared for pre- and post-introduction of a pharmacist using a Mann-Whitney U-test. The mean number of criteria for each time-point within each group was compared using a paired Student's t-test. RESULTS ANDDISCUSSION:
The demographic characteristics of the participants in the pre- and post-intervention groups were similar. The post-intervention group had numerically less STOPP/START criteria, mean 1·18 (1·37) compared to the pre-intervention group 1·50 (1·41), P = 0·07 at discharge. The pre-intervention group had no significant change in the criteria from admission 1·78 (1·57) to geriatric unit transfer 1·72 (1·54) (P = 0·37); however, there was a significant decrease from geriatric unit transfer 1·72 (1·54) to discharge 1·50 (1·41) (P = 0·02). The post-intervention group had a significant decrease from hospital admission 2·30 (1·91) to geriatric unit transfer 1·59 (1·60) (P < 0·01) and again to discharge 1·18 (1·37) (P < 0·01). WHAT IS NEW ANDCONCLUSION:
Pharmacist participation on the ward round in a specialized geriatric unit resulted in a numerical improvement in prescribing quality as measured by the STOPP/START tool.Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Bases de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Farmacéuticos
/
Prescripción Inadecuada
/
Servicios de Salud para Ancianos
Tipo de estudio:
Etiology_studies
/
Incidence_studies
/
Observational_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Límite:
Adult
/
Aged
/
Aged80
/
Female
/
Humans
/
Male
/
Middle aged
Idioma:
En
Revista:
J Clin Pharm Ther
Asunto de la revista:
FARMACIA
/
TERAPEUTICA
Año:
2017
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Australia