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Journal of Patient Safety Jun 2024The objective of this paper is to assess the diagnostic value of an antithrombotic questionnaire tool compared with the hospital's medical record information tool. The...
OBJECTIVE
The objective of this paper is to assess the diagnostic value of an antithrombotic questionnaire tool compared with the hospital's medical record information tool. The hypothesis of this study was that the antithrombotic questionnaire tool could identify patients with potentially incorrect antithrombotic therapy.
METHODS
This cross-sectional study was conducted in eight community pharmacies in the Netherlands. A standardized questionnaire was developed as antithrombotic questionnaire tool. The pharmacist assessed whether the antithrombotic therapy was correct or potentially incorrect based on answers given by patients and based on the medical record. The primary outcome of the study was the sensitivity and specificity of the antithrombotic questionnaire tool to identify patients with potentially incorrect antithrombotic therapy.
RESULTS
For 95 patients, the pharmacist assessed that in 81 (85%) the antithrombotic therapy was correct and in 14 (15%) potentially incorrect. Based on the medical record, 86 patients (91%) were assessed as correct and 9 (9%) as potentially incorrect. The sensitivity of the tool was 100% and the specificity 94%.
CONCLUSIONS
This study demonstrated that the antithrombotic questionnaire tool is a suitable tool to assess whether the patient's antithrombotic therapy is potentially incorrect. It can be applied to identify patients with potentially incorrect antithrombotic therapy.
PubMed: 38920416
DOI: 10.1097/PTS.0000000000001246 -
Hospital Pharmacy Aug 2024Each month, subscribers to receive 5 to 6 well-documented monographs on drugs that are newly released or are in late phase 3 trials. The monographs are targeted to... (Review)
Review
Each month, subscribers to receive 5 to 6 well-documented monographs on drugs that are newly released or are in late phase 3 trials. The monographs are targeted to Pharmacy & Therapeutics Committees. Subscribers also receive monthly 1-page summary monographs on agents that are useful for agendas and pharmacy/nursing in-services. A comprehensive target drug utilization evaluation/medication use evaluation (DUE/MUE) is also provided each month. With a subscription, the monographs are available online to subscribers. Monographs can be customized to meet the needs of a facility. Through the cooperation of publishes selected reviews in this column. For more information about , contact Wolters Kluwer customer service at 866-397-3433.
PubMed: 38919758
DOI: 10.1177/00185787241236439 -
Research in Social & Administrative... Jun 2024To develop and externally validate a prognostic model built on important factors predisposing multimorbid patients to all-cause readmission and/or death. In addition to...
OBJECTIVE
To develop and externally validate a prognostic model built on important factors predisposing multimorbid patients to all-cause readmission and/or death. In addition to identify patients who may benefit most from a comprehensive clinical pharmacist intervention.
METHODS
A multivariable prognostic model was developed based on data from a randomised controlled trial investigating the effect of pharmacist-led medicines management on readmission rate in multimorbid, hospitalised patients. The derivation set comprised 386 patients randomised in a 1:1 manner to the intervention group, i.e. with a pharmacist included in their multidisciplinary treatment team, or the control group receiving standard care at the ward. External validation of the model was performed using data from an independent cohort, in which 100 patients were randomised to the same intervention, or standard care. The setting was an internal medicines ward at a university hospital in Norway.
RESULTS
The number of patients who were readmitted or had died within 18 months after discharge was 297 (76.9 %) in the derivation set, i.e. the randomized controlled trial, and 69 (71.1 %) in the validation set, i.e. the independent cohort. Charlson comorbidity index (CCI; low, moderate or high), previous hospital admissions within the previous six months and heart failure were the strongest prognostic factors and were included in the final model. The efficacy of the pharmaceutical intervention did not prove significant in the model. A prognostic index (PI) was constructed to estimate the hazard of readmission or death (low, intermediate or high-risk groups). Overall, the external validation replicated the result. We were unable to identify a subgroup of the multimorbid patients with better efficacy of the intervention.
CONCLUSIONS
A prognostic model including CCI, previous admissions and heart failure can be used to obtain valid estimates of risk of readmission and death in patients with multimorbidity.
PubMed: 38918144
DOI: 10.1016/j.sapharm.2024.06.007 -
PloS One 2024The Mexican government has pursued multiple initiatives to improve healthcare coverage and financial protection. Yet, out-of-pocket health spending and use of private...
OBJECTIVE
The Mexican government has pursued multiple initiatives to improve healthcare coverage and financial protection. Yet, out-of-pocket health spending and use of private sector providers in Mexico remains high. In this paper, we sought to describe the characteristics of public and private healthcare users, describe recent visit quality across provider types, and to assess whether perceiving the public healthcare sector as poor quality is associated with private health sector use.
METHODS AND FINDINGS
We analyzed the cross-sectional People's Voice Survey conducted from December 2022 to January 2023. We used Chi-square tests to compare contextual, individual, and need-for-care factors and ratings of most recent visits between users of public (social security and other public providers) and private sector providers (stand-alone private providers and providers adjacent to pharmacies). We used a multivariable Poisson regression model to assess associations between low ratings of public healthcare sources and the use of private care. Among the 811 respondents with a healthcare visit in the past year, 31.2% used private sources. Private healthcare users were more educated and had higher incomes than public healthcare users. Quality of most recent visit was rated more highly in private providers (70.2% rating the visit as excellent or very good for stand-alone private providers and 54.3% for pharmacy-adjacent doctors) compared to social security (41.6%) and other public providers (46.6%). Those who perceived public health institutions as low quality had a higher probability of seeking private healthcare.
CONCLUSION
Users rated public care visits poorly relative to private care; at the population level, perceptions of poor quality care may drive private care use and hence out-of-pocket costs. Improving public healthcare quality is necessary to ensure universal health coverage.
Topics: Humans; Private Sector; Male; Female; Mexico; Adult; Middle Aged; Cross-Sectional Studies; Quality of Health Care; Surveys and Questionnaires; Public Sector; Adolescent; Young Adult; Perception; Health Expenditures; Delivery of Health Care
PubMed: 38917130
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0306179 -
Journal of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical... 2024Treatment for diabetes includes anti-diabetic medication in addition to lifestyle improvements through diet and exercise. In Japan, protocol-based pharmacotherapy...
Investigating the effect of prescribing status and patient characteristics on the therapeutic outcomes in patients with diabetes using a leftover drug adjustment protocol.
Treatment for diabetes includes anti-diabetic medication in addition to lifestyle improvements through diet and exercise. In Japan, protocol-based pharmacotherapy management allows drug treatment to be provided through cooperation between physicians and pharmacists, based on a protocol that is prepared and agreed upon in advance. However, there are no studies to clarify the relationship between patient characteristics and therapeutic effects after pharmacist intervention in protocol-based pharmacotherapy management for patients with diabetes. Therefore, this study aimed to use protocol-based reports from pharmacies to understand the status of outpatient diabetes medication compliance. We classified patients with diabetes on the basis of patient characteristics that can be collected in pharmacies and investigated the characteristics that impacted diabetes treatment. Patients were prescribed oral anti-diabetic drugs at outpatient clinics of Hitachinaka General Hospital, Hitachi, Ltd., from April 2016 to March 2021. Survey items included patient characteristics (sex, age, number of drugs used, observed number of years of anti-diabetic drug prescription, number of anti-diabetic drug prescription days, and presence or absence of leftover anti-diabetic drugs) and HbA1c levels. Graphical analyses indicated the relationship between each categorised patient characteristic using multiple correspondence analyses. Subsequently, the patients were clustered using K-means cluster analysis based on the coordinates obtained for each patient. Patient characteristics and HbA1c values were compared between the groups for each cluster. A total of 1,910 patients were included and classified into three clusters, with clusters 1, 2, and 3 containing 625, 703, and 582 patients, respectively. Patient characteristics strongly associated with Cluster 1 were ages between 65 and 74 years, use of three or more anti-diabetic drugs, use of 3 years or more of anti-diabetic drugs, and leftover anti-diabetic drugs. Furthermore, Cluster 1 had the highest number of patients with worsening HbA1c levels compared with other clusters. Using the leftover drug adjustment protocol, we clarified the patient characteristics that affected the treatment course. We anticipate that through targeted interventions in patients exhibiting these characteristics, we can identify those who are irresponsibly continuing with drug treatment, are not responding well to therapy, or both. This could substantially improve the efficacy of their anti-diabetic care.
Topics: Humans; Male; Female; Hypoglycemic Agents; Aged; Middle Aged; Diabetes Mellitus; Treatment Outcome; Drug Prescriptions; Glycated Hemoglobin; Pharmacists; Medication Adherence; Japan; Aged, 80 and over; Adult
PubMed: 38915418
DOI: 10.3389/jpps.2024.12886 -
Annals of Family Medicine Jun 2024We undertook a study to investigate the relationship between duration of medication use and prevalence of impaired awareness of hypoglycemia (IAH) among patients with...
PURPOSE
We undertook a study to investigate the relationship between duration of medication use and prevalence of impaired awareness of hypoglycemia (IAH) among patients with insulin-treated or sulfonylurea-treated type 2 diabetes in Taiwan.
METHODS
A total of 898 patients (41.0% insulin users, 65.1% sulfonylurea users; mean [SD] age = 59.9 [12.3] years, 50.7% female) were enrolled in pharmacies, clinics, and health bureaus of Tainan City, Taiwan. Presence of IAH was determined with Chinese versions of the Gold questionnaire (Gold-TW) and Clarke questionnaire (Clarke-TW). Sociodemographics, disease and treatment histories, diabetes-related medical care, and health status were collected. We used multiple logistic regression models to assess the relationship between duration of medication use and IAH.
RESULTS
Overall IAH prevalence was 41.0% (Gold-TW) and 28.2% (Clarke-TW) among insulin users, and 65.3% (Gold-TW) and 51.3% (Clarke-TW) among sulfonylurea users. Prevalence increased with the duration of sulfonylurea use, whereas it decreased with the duration of insulin use. After controlling for potential confounders, 5 or more years of sulfonylurea use was significantly associated with 3.50-fold (95% CI, 2.39-5.13) and 3.06-fold (95% CI, 2.11-4.44) increases in the odds of IAH based on the Gold-TW and Clarke-TW criteria, respectively. On the other hand, regular blood glucose testing and retinal examinations were associated with reduced odds in both insulin users and sulfonylurea users.
CONCLUSIONS
The prevalence of IAH was high among patients using sulfonylureas long term, but the odds of this complication were attenuated for those who received regular diabetes-related medical care. Our study suggests that long-term sulfonylurea use and irregular follow-up increase risk for IAH. Further prospective studies are needed to confirm the observed associations.
PubMed: 38914437
DOI: 10.1370/afm.3129 -
International Journal of Pharmaceutics Jun 2024Lidocaine is generally recognized and preferred for local anaesthesia, but in addition, studies have described additional benefits of lidocaine in cancer therapy,...
Lidocaine is generally recognized and preferred for local anaesthesia, but in addition, studies have described additional benefits of lidocaine in cancer therapy, inflammation reduction, and wound healing. These properties contribute to its increasing importance in dermatological applications, and not only in pain relief but also in other potential therapeutic outcomes. Therefore, the purpose of our study was to enhance lidocaine delivery through the skin. A stable nanostructured lipid carrier (NLC), as a passive permeation enhancer, was developed using a 2 full factorial design. The nanosystems were characterized by crystallinity behaviour, particle size, zeta potential, encapsulation efficiency measurements, and one of them was selected for further investigation. Then, NLC gel was formulated for dermal application and compared to a traditional dermal ointment in terms of physicochemical (rheological behaviour) and biopharmaceutical (qualitative Franz diffusion and quantitative Raman investigations) properties. The study also examined the use of 3D printed solid microneedles as active permeation enhancers for these systems, offering a minimally invasive approach to enhance transdermal drug delivery. By actively facilitating drug permeation through the skin, microneedles can complement the passive transport achieved by NLCs, thereby providing an innovative and synergistic approach to improving lidocaine delivery.
PubMed: 38914351
DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2024.124377 -
Journal of the American Pharmacists... Jun 2024Fentanyl test strips (FTS) are used to detect the presence of fentanyl in other substances, but Alabama pharmacists' opinions regarding FTS provision are unknown.
BACKGROUND
Fentanyl test strips (FTS) are used to detect the presence of fentanyl in other substances, but Alabama pharmacists' opinions regarding FTS provision are unknown.
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to assess the knowledge and perceptions of Alabama pharmacists regarding FTS and factors influencing pharmacists' FTS provision intentions across community pharmacy locations and types.
METHODS
An anonymous cross-sectional survey was distributed via email to Alabama pharmacists employed in community (retail) pharmacies. The survey consisted of multiple-choice questions and 5-point Likert-type scales (1=strongly disagree, 5=strongly agree) informed by the Theory of Planned Behavior. Primary outcome measures included: knowledge; general attitudes; perceived benefits; perceived barriers; self-efficacy; subjective norms; perceived behavioral control (PBC); and intention regarding FTS provision. Outcomes were characterized using descriptive statistics and differences in scales scores across pharmacy locations (rural versus urban) and types (corporately- versus independently-owned) were assessed using Mann-Whitney U tests. Predictors of FTS provision intentions were evaluated using multiple linear regression (alpha=0.05).
RESULTS
Respondents (N=131; 3.82% response rate) were mostly female (64%) and Caucasian (92%). No respondents stocked FTS at their pharmacy and knowledge about FTS was low (mean[SD] knowledge score: 58.7%[15.1]). Despite the existence of perceived barriers (mean[SD] scale score: 3.2[0.6]), pharmacists' general attitudes (3.4[0.5]), perceived benefits (3.7[0.6]), self-efficacy (3.1[0.8]), and intentions (3.2[0.7]) were positive. While subjective norms were positive (3.5[0.6]), PBC over FTS decision-making was negative (2.7[0.8]). Subjective norms were higher (p=0.040) and PBC was lower (p<0.001) amongst corporately- versus independently-owned pharmacies, but no differences existed between rural and urban locations for any measures. Additionally, perceived benefits (β=0.342, p=0.002), PBC (β=0.133, p=0.045), and self-efficacy (β=0.142, p=0.034) were positive predictors and perceived barriers (β=-0.211, p=0.029) was a negative predictor of intention.
CONCLUSION
Alabama community pharmacists have positive attitudes regarding FTS, but future research should focus on strategies to increase PBC and overcome perceived barriers.
PubMed: 38914293
DOI: 10.1016/j.japh.2024.102148 -
Journal of Pharmacy Practice Jun 2024Statins are a highly effective lipid-lowering therapy associated with significant reductions in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) events and death. Despite...
Statins are a highly effective lipid-lowering therapy associated with significant reductions in atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease (ASCVD) events and death. Despite these benefits, statins are underutilized. Pharmacist-led interventions to increase statin prescribing are effective. To our knowledge, no prior studies implemented a comprehensive cardiovascular risk assessment utilizing point-of-care (POC) testing in community pharmacies. The primary objective was to determine if community pharmacists can be utilized to identify gaps in care regarding appropriate use of statin therapy for prevention of ASCVD events in HPSAs. Secondary objectives were to assess public interest in ASCVD risk assessment and statin prescribing by the pharmacist, and to identify factors associated with statin gaps in care. A cross-sectional study was conducted at three independent community pharmacies. Participants were identified based on age and medication history and were scheduled at their pharmacy to receive a comprehensive ASCVD risk screening consisting of POC measurement of a complete lipid panel, blood glucose or A1C, and blood pressure. Participants were informed of their statin candidacy at the screening. Participants completed a survey regarding perceptions of the services provided and opinions of statin prescribing by pharmacists. Of the 57 participants, 43 (75.4%) were possible statin candidates. Most indicated trusting their pharmacist to prescribe a cholesterol-lowering medication and felt insurance should pay for these screenings. ASCVD risk assessment conducted within the community pharmacy setting for can be utilized to identify treatment gaps in status use. Participants indicated trusting pharmacists to provide this service and found the service valuable.
PubMed: 38914018
DOI: 10.1177/08971900241262362 -
SAGE Open Medicine 2024Health hazards such as adverse drug reactions and prolonged morbidity are fallouts of self-medication among young people in sub-Saharan Africa. The aim of this study was...
Prevalence, practice, determinants and adverse effects of self-medication among young people living in a suburban community of Ekiti, Nigeria: A community-based cross-sectional study.
OBJECTIVES
Health hazards such as adverse drug reactions and prolonged morbidity are fallouts of self-medication among young people in sub-Saharan Africa. The aim of this study was to assess the prevalence, practice, determinants, and adverse effects of self-medication among young people living in a suburban community of Ekiti, Nigeria.
METHODS
This survey was a descriptive, cross-sectional study of 602 young people aged 16-24 years., who were randomly selected in the community. A predesigned self-administered questionnaire was used for data collection. The study was conducted from 1st March to 31st May 2023. The independent variables measured include the sociodemographic characteristics, while the dependent variables are the practice of self-medication and factors that predisposes to self-medication. The general characteristics of the participants were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The categorical variables were reported as frequency distribution and proportions with 95% confidence intervals and were compared using the Chi-square test or Fisher's exact test. A -value of <0.05 was considered statistically significant.
RESULTS
Over 30% (31.7%) of the participants engage in self-medication. A larger proportion of the people who practiced self-medication lived a trekking distance of less than 1 km from the nearest health facility with a doctor ( = 0.044). The practice of self-medication was statistically related with being a student when compared with gainfully employed and unemployed people ( = 0.006). Fever (39.8%), abdominal pain (17.3%) and headaches (16.2%) were the topmost three ailments that necessitated self-medication. Antimalarials (44.0%), antibiotics (25.1%), and antipyretics (16.8%) were high on the list of drugs used for self-medication. Headache (34.0%) was the most common adverse reaction from self-medication among the participants studied.
CONCLUSION
Adverse reactions and drug addiction were negative fallouts of self-medication, which can affect the health of young people as they grow into adulthood. Therefore, monitoring of drug outlets must be taken seriously by government agencies to prevent the worsening of the negative effects of self-medication.
PubMed: 38911442
DOI: 10.1177/20503121241261002