. Brittany M. Wills; . William Darko; . Robert Seabury; . Luke A. Probst; . Christopher D. Miller; . Gregory M. Cwikla
Volume 5, Issue 2 , April 2016, , Pages 142-145
Abstract
Objective: Pharmacy‑driven medication history (MH) programs have been shown to reduce the number of serious or potentially life‑threatening (S/PLT) medication discrepancies ...
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Objective: Pharmacy‑driven medication history (MH) programs have been shown to reduce the number of serious or potentially life‑threatening (S/PLT) medication discrepancies (MDs) in many settings, but not Intensive Care Units (ICUs).Methods: MHs were repeated over a 6‑week period. Demographics, number, and nature of MDs were documented. Discrepancy severity was graded using a previously published method. Primary outcome was the proportion of MHs containing >1 S/PLT MDs.Findings: Sixty‑three MHs were repeated. Pharmacy MHs were less likely to contain ≥1 S/PLT MDs (0% vs. 50%, P < 0.001).Conclusion: Pharmacy MHs contained fewer S/PLT MDs in this small sample. S/PLT MDs on admission and home medication lists were common in patients admitted to the medical ICU. Pharmacy‑driven medication reconciliation (MR) reduced the number and frequency of these discrepancies. Further research is required to improve current MR procedures.
