Reducing inappropriate prescribing of sublingual nifedipine

To report a program to reduce the practice of prescribing sublingual nifedipine.

Pharmacy records were used to identify orders for sublingual nifedipine at Georgetown University Medical Center. Initial review showed 30-40 orders/month, or approximately 11% of all nifedipine orders. A newsletter was published outlining Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee guidelines for the use of nifedipine when rapid onset of action is desired. Further educational efforts involved correspondence with each attending physician responsible for the sublingual nifedipine orders. A reduction in orders for sublingual nifedipine to approximately 10 orders/month (3.9% of total nifedipine orders) was observed after using this educational approach. The reduction in orders has been maintained by frequent contact with the attending physicians.

Repeated educational measures have resulted in a reduction in the inappropriate prescribing of sublingual nifedipine.