COVID-19 Vaccination and Immunosuppressive Therapy in Immune-Mediated Inflammatory Diseases.

The COVID-19 vaccination program has probably been the most complex and extensive project in history until now, which has been a challenge for all the people involved in the planning and management of this program. Patients with immune-mediated inflammatory diseases (IMIDs) on immunosuppressive therapy have required special attention, not only because of the particular haste in carrying out the process but also because of the uncertainty regarding their response to the vaccines. We now have strong scientific evidence that supports the hypothesis that immunosuppressive therapy inhibits the humoral response to vaccines against other infectious agents, such as influenza, pneumococcus and hepatitis B.

Ifema hospital model. Implementation and start-up of the Pharmacy Department.

On the 20th of March 2020, triggered by the public health emergency declared,  the Health Authorities in Madrid reported a legal instruction (Orden 371/2020)  indicating the organization of a provisional hospital to admit patients with  COVID-19 at the Trade Fair Institution (IFEMA). Several pharmacists working in  the Pharmacy and Medical Devices Department of the Madrid Regional Health  Service were called to manage the Pharmacy Department of the  abovementioned hospital. Required permissions to set up a PD were here  authorized urgently.

Polypharmacy and Drug-Drug Interactions in People Living With Human Immunodeficiency Virus in the Region of Madrid, Spain: A Population-Based Study.

Background: Drug-drug interactions (DDIs) that involve antiretrovirals (ARVs) tend to cause harm if unrecognized, especially in the context of comorbidity and polypharmacy.

Methods: A linkage was established between the drug dispensing registry of Madrid and the Liverpool human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) DDI database (January 2017-June 2017). Polypharmacy was defined as the use of ≥5 non-HIV medications, and DDIs were classified by a traffic-light ranking for severity.

Adaptation of oral medication in people institutionalized in nursing homes for whom medication is crushed: The ADECUA Study.

Purpose: To evaluate the effect of pharmacist interventions in the adaptation of pharmaceutical forms in elders institutionalized in nursing homes whose medicines are crushed, which may have a clinical relevance.

Methods: Quasi-experimental, multicenter, transversal and prospective study carried out in 10 nursing homes. Subjects for whom drugs were being crushed were identified.