2020 Volume 21 Issue 3 Pages 141-145
An increasing number of facilities have recently introduced protocol-based pharmacotherapy management (PBPM) to achieve a preliminary agreement with an attending doctor on dispensing changes for questionable out-of-hospital prescriptions, thereby making dispensing more efficient. The PBPM should eliminate the need of telephone inquiries about questionable out-of-hospital prescriptions, reduce interruptions in insurance dispensing pharmacies and clinical facilities, and shorten patient's waiting time.
In the present study, the numbers of inquiries about questionable out-of-hospital prescriptions and PBPM applications were evaluated for the introduction of PBPM in the health insurance pharmacy responsible for about 60% of out-of-hospital prescriptions at our hospital. In addition, a questionnaire survey was conducted in health insurance pharmacies to evaluate the protocol. The number of inquiries about questionable out-of-hospital prescriptions decreased after the introduction of PBPM. Although the numbers of PBPM applications and inquiries about questionable out-of-hospital prescriptions varied from month to month, the percentage of PBPM applications, divided by the total number of prescription changes, ranged from 60% to 80%. The questionnaire survey demonstrated the effectiveness of the PBPM.
The PBPM will be implemented through careful examination to reduce the routine burdens of doctors and pharmacists in health insurance pharmacies and lead to appropriate drug therapies.
