[Pharmaceutical care self-assessment process for hospitalized patients through the Valor program]

To assess the quality of pharmaceutical care for inpatients using qualitative criteria as established in the Valor program.

Evaluation study through 43 explicit structural, process, and outcome criteria within the Valor program, in which pharmacists in the Unit Dose Functional Unit may assess themselves along a compliance scale from 0 to 100%. This Unit provides daily individualized pharmaceutical care to 550 patients in an adult general and surgery hospital. Mean scores per pharmacist and item are estimated for the 2003-2005 period.

Mean compliance assessments for all 14 interannual "structural items" were 53, 57, and 64%; those for all 13 "process items" were 52, 51, and 46%; and those for all 15 "outcome items" were 18, 28, and 26%. A variability of 20% was documented for structure and process evaluations, and of 50% for outcome assessments.

Every autoevaluation raises to the equipment the necessity to establish improvements and to enhance communication, and the application of standardized procedures in the pharmaceutical care process.