Pharmacy education and practice in 13 Middle Eastern countries.

The Arab world has influenced the art and science of pharmacy for centuries. Pharmacy education and practice is continuing to evolve in the Arabic-speaking traditional Middle East countries, although relatively little information has been published in the English press. Our goal was to provide a high-level synopsis of conditions in this region.

Documenting drug-related problems with personal digital assistants in a multisite health system.

Purpose: A scalable, multiuser, personal digital assistant (PDA)-based documentation tool for pharmacist collection of data on drug-related problems (DRPs) is described.

Summary: A PDA-based tool for documenting DRPs and pharmacist interventions was developed with database software. Data fields were based on the pharmaceutical care model.

The impact of a pharmacist-managed dosage form conversion service on ciprofloxacin usage at a major Canadian teaching hospital: a pre- and post-intervention study.

Background: Despite cost containment efforts, parenteral (IV) ciprofloxacin appears to be overutilized at Vancouver General Hospital. In November 2003, the Pharmacist-managed intravenous to oral (IV-PO) Dosage Form Conversion Service was implemented, enabling autonomous pharmacist-initiated dosage form conversion for ciprofloxacin. This study evaluates characteristics of ciprofloxacin use prior to and following implementation of this conversion service.

Willingness to pay to assess patient preferences for therapy in a Canadian setting.

Background: Adult outpatient parenteral antibiotic therapy (OPAT) programs have been reported in the literature for over 20 years, however there are no published reports quantifying preference for treatment location of patients referred to an OPAT program. The purpose of this study was to elicit treatment location preferences and willingness to pay (WTP) from patients referred to an OPAT program.

Methods: A multidisciplinary, single centre, prospective study at a 1000-bed Canadian adult tertiary care teaching hospital.

Pharmacist computer skills and needs assessment survey.

Background: To use technology effectively for the advancement of patient care, pharmacists must possess a variety of computer skills. We recently introduced a novel applied informatics program in this Canadian hospital clinical service unit to enhance the informatics skills of our members.

Objective: This study was conducted to gain a better understanding of the baseline computer skills and needs of our hospital pharmacists immediately prior to the implementation of an applied informatics program.

An assessment of quality of sleep and the use of drugs with sedating properties in hospitalized adult patients.

Background: Hospitalization can significantly disrupt sleeping patterns. In consideration of the previous reports of insomnia and apparent widespread use of benzodiazepines and other hypnotics in hospitalized patients, we conducted a study to assess quality of sleep and hypnotic drug use in our acute care adult patient population. The primary objectives of this study were to assess sleep disturbance and its determinants including the use of drugs with sedating properties.

Industry sponsorship and authorship of clinical trials over 20 years.

Background: The pharmaceutical industry has become a major source of funding for biomedical research. Our general observation is that pharmaceutical industry employees are appearing with increasing frequency as coauthors of clinical trial publications.

Objective: To characterize clinical trial funding, reporting, and sources; investigate author-industry affiliation; and describe clinical outcome trends over time.

Selecting antibacterials for outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy : pharmacokinetic-pharmacodynamic considerations.

Some infectious diseases require management with parenteral therapy, although the patient may not need hospitalisation. Consequently, the administration of intravenous antimicrobials in a home or infusion clinic setting has now become commonplace. Outpatient parenteral antimicrobial therapy (OPAT) is considered safe, therapeutically effective and economical.

Point of care use of a personal digital assistant for patient consultation management: experience of an intravenous resource nurse team in a major Canadian teaching hospital.

The development and integration of a personal digital assistant (PDA)-based point-of-care database into an intravenous resource nurse (IVRN) consultation service for the purposes of consultation management and service characterization are described. The IVRN team provides a consultation service 7 days a week in this 1000-bed tertiary adult care teaching hospital. No simple, reliable method for documenting IVRN patient care activity and facilitating IVRN-initiated patient follow-up evaluation was available.

Patterns of use and patients' attitudes toward complementary medications: a survey of adult general medicine patients at a major Canadian teaching hospital.

Objective: To characterize the preadmission and hospital utilization of, and patients' attitudes toward, complementary medications.

Patients And Methods: Patient survey data were collected at an acute care hospital over a four-month period for 85 patients who had been admitted to the general medicine wards. Patient information about complementary medicine use and opinions were obtained through patient interviews.

Quality-of-life assessment in an outpatient parenteral antibiotic program.

Objective: To measure changes and to identify predictors of change of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) for enrollees into an outpatient parenteral antibiotic therapy (OPAT) program.

Methods: A multidisciplinary, single-center, prospective investigation was conducted at a 1000-bed Canadian adult tertiary-care teaching hospital. Over a 15-month study period, consenting patients who were enrolled in the OPAT program completed paired Short Form-36 (SF-36) questionnaires within 48 hours prior to discharge from the hospital and again 26-30 days after discharge.

An infusion program resource nurse consult service: our experience in a major Canadian teaching hospital.

Infusion resource teams are comprised of nurses specially trained and experienced in infusion therapy. Our multidisciplinary team provides clinical, educational, and research support to a 1000-bed Canadian tertiary hospital. To characterize the infusion resource nurse service, 789 recorded consults for 250 patients during a 12-month period study were reviewed.

Monoamine Oxidase Inhibitors in General Anesthesia: A Reevaluation.

A controlled study on the cardiovascular safety of monoamine oxidase inhibitors (MAOI) during general anesthesia for electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) was completed. No serious changes in blood pressure, heart rate, or ectopic beats were noted in either the MAOI or control groups during ECT. Based on pharmacological data, a review of the literature, and these preliminary results, the recommended 2-week discontinuation of MAOI before ECT appears unwarranted.