Impact of pharmacy student and resident-led discharge counseling on heart failure patients.

Purpose: Many health systems have implemented interventions to reduce the rate of heart failure readmissions. Pharmacists have the training and expertise to provide effective medication-related education. However, few studies have examined the impact of discharge education provided by pharmacy students and residents on patients hospitalized with heart failure exacerbations.

Addressing challenges in bar-code scanning of large-volume infusion bags.

Purpose: A hospital pharmacy's efforts to identify and address challenges with bedside scanning of bar codes on large-volume parenteral (LVP) infusion bags are described.

Summary: Bar-code-assisted medication administration (BCMA) has been shown to reduce medication errors and improve patient safety. After the pilot implementation of a BCMA system and point-of-care scanning procedures at a medical center's intensive care unit, it was noted that nurses' attempted bedside scans of certain LVP bags for product identification purposes often were not successful.

Potentially inappropriate medication use in hospitalized elders.

Background: Prescribing of potentially harmful medications has not been well documented in hospitals.

Objective: The objective of the study was to determine the rate of and factors associated with potentially inappropriate medication (PIM) prescribing in a large inpatient sample.

Design: The study was a retrospective cohort of the period between September 1, 2002, and June 30, 2005.

Effect of a clinical pharmacist's interventions on duration of antiretroviral-related errors in hospitalized patients.

Purpose: The effect of a clinical pharmacist's interventions on the duration of antiretroviral-related errors in hospitalized patients was studied.

Methods: Between August 4, 2005, and February 4, 2006, all patients at least 18 years of age who were admitted to a 651-bed tertiary care teaching hospital and prescribed highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) were identified by one clinical pharmacist. If a HAART error was suspected, the pharmacist intervened with the house staff or outpatient physician to discuss and resolve the problem.