Percepción del farmacéutico sobre su actuación e implicación profesional en la dispensación y entrega gratuita a la población de la Comunidad de Madrid de test de antígenos de autodiagnóstico de COVID-19 / Pharmacist's perception of their performance and professional involvement in the dispensing and free delivery of COVID-19 self-diagnostic antigen tests to the population of the Community of Madrid

Introducción: en 2021, la Comunidad de Madrid dio un paso más en su lucha contra la pandemia al incorporar la red de farmacias comunitarias a su Programa de Salud Pública para la detección precoz, vigilancia y control de COVID-19, en concreto con su participación en la realización de prue bas rápidas de antígenos para el diagnóstico de la infección por SARS-CoV-2 y con la provisión a la población de pruebas gratuitas para el autodiagnóstico. Desde el Colegio Oficial de Farmacéuticos de Madrid se consideró pertinente llevar a cabo un estudio con el objetivo de determinar la percepción global del farmacéutico comunitario sobre su actuación e implicación profesional, así como la de manda de información por parte de la población durante la campaña de dispensación y entrega de test gratuitos. Métodos: estudio observacional descriptivo prospectivo transversal. Realizado, mediante la téc nica de encuesta entre el 4 y 17 de mayo de 2022 a través de un cuestionario online. Resultados: el 76,8 % de los farmacéuticos ofrecieron, de forma habitual, información técnica sobre los test a los pacientes que la solicitaban. El 8,3 % de los farmacéuticos indican que la gran mayoría de los pacientes a los que ya les habían dispensado el test regresaron a la farmacia para so licitar información sobre los mismos y un 11,2 % indican que la mayoría de los pacientes que acudían a retirar los test, les pedían que les realizaran el test en la farmacia. La intervención más frecuente, conforme a las respuestas del 61,0 % de los encuestados, fue la de proporcionar información sobre cómo utilizar el test e interpretar los resultados (AU)

incorporating the community pharmacy network to its public health program for the early detection, surveillance, and control of COVID-19. Specifically, pharmacies participated in the performance of rapid antigen testing for the diagnosis of SARS-CoV-2 infection and provided the population with free self-test ing kits. From the Official College of Pharmacy of Madrid (“Colegio Oficial de Farmacéuticos de Madrid”), a study was conducted to evaluate the professional involvement and role of community pharmacists, as well as the degree of information demanded by the public during the distribution of self-testing kits. Methods: This was an observational, cross-sectional, prospective study that employed online surveys collected between May 4th and 17th 2022. Results: 76.8% of pharmacists offered technical information to approximately 58% of users that came to retrieve their self-testing kits. 26% of users returned for additional advice, and 1/3 of users asked for the test to be conducted in the pharmacy. The most frequent intervention (61%) was providing infor mation on test usage and interpretation. In most cases (56.7%), pharmacists spent between 1-5 minutes in the distribution of self-testing kits, with a lower percentage (20.3%) spending between 5-10 minutes. Notably, 98.3% of pharmacists identified that this public health campaign altered their daily workflow, with 86% considering that there should have been financial compensation for their involvement. Conclusions: This study highlighted the crucial role that pharmacists played in the public health cam paign against COVID-19. Moreover, it reflected the pharmacists’ opinions on their involvement in this novel role, separate from their traditional workflow, that ultimately contributed to improving population health (AU)

[Colorectal surgery in patients over 65 years of age]. / Cirugía colorrectal en pacientes mayores de 65 años.

BACKGROUND: There is a limited functional reserve in patients over 65 years of age which is conducive to more frequent postoperative complications. Disease extension at the time of diagnosis (clinical stage) and complete tumor resection are two independent risk factors that have a direct influence on survival. AIMS: To describe the factors that influence morbidity and mortality in patients over 65 years of age after colorectal surgery. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A retrospective, observational, descriptive study was carried out within the time frame of January 2004 and December 2009 on 105 colon cancer patients after colorectal surgery. They were divided into two groups, one under 65 years of age and the other over 65 years of age, in order to compare preoperative comorbidity, as well as morbidity and mortality 30 days after surgery. RESULTS: Of the 105 patient total (53,3%), 56 were ≤ 65 years of age. There were complications in 42,8% of the patients, and those of early and less severe presentation were the most frequent; late complications were more frequent in patients ≤ 65 vs > 65 years of age (16,0% vs 10,2%). Overweight (BMI > 25 kg/m(2)) was observed in 35,0% of the study population. Patients > 65 years of age had fewer comorbidities. The most common causes of reintervention were anastomosis dehiscence and postoperative hemorrhage. Mortality in the group was 6,6% and sepsis was the most frequent cause of death. CONCLUSIONS: Colorectal surgery in patients over 65 years of age has an acceptable complication frequency and a low mortality rate. Our results suggest that patients older than 65 years of age be treated with the same prospects for cure as younger patients.