Nursing education program: fundamental to successful drug distribution

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Practice
• Nursing Education
• Healthcare Systems Management

Background:

• Chronic care facilities often utilize traditional floor stock drug distribution systems.
• Transitioning to a unit dose system requires comprehensive staff training and procedural changes.
• Effective inservice programs are crucial for successful implementation of new pharmaceutical distribution models.

Purpose of the Study:

• To illustrate a step-by-step inservice program for converting a chronic care facility from floor stock to a unit dose drug distribution system.
• To describe a flexible and effective training program for nursing staff on the unit dose system.
• To highlight the benefits of a videotape module in pharmacy education.

Main Methods:

• Development and implementation of a multi-component inservice program.
• Inclusion of a policy and procedure manual, lecture, videotape module, demonstration, practice, and return demonstration.
• Utilization of a demonstration cassette and Kardex for teaching and evaluation.
• Post-testing to assess knowledge and performance.

Main Results:

• Successful conversion from a routine floor stock drug distribution system to a non-traditional unit dose system.
• The inservice program proved effective for both initial conversion and ongoing new nurse orientation.
• A videotape module enhanced instructional flexibility and was expanded to other pharmacy education programs.

Conclusions:

• The described inservice program effectively facilitates the transition to a unit dose drug distribution system in chronic care settings.
• The program's components, particularly the videotape module, offer a flexible and efficient training solution for nursing staff.
• The successful implementation demonstrates the value of structured educational programs in optimizing pharmaceutical distribution and patient care.