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Published on: March 11, 2017
[Healthcare providers' experience with multi-dose packaged medicines]
Kristin Fladstad Heier1, Vibeke Krohn Olsen, Sture Rognstad
1Fagområde samfunnsfarmasi, Avdeling for farmasi, Farmasøytisk institutt, Universitetet i Oslo, Oslo. k.heier@allianceapotek.no
Summary
Multi-dose packaged medicines (MDPM) generally improve medication handling routines and safety in community homecare services (CHS). While nurses reported higher satisfaction, GPs noted increased prescribing time but also enhanced confidence in patient medication delivery.
Area of Science:
- Healthcare delivery
- Pharmaceutical packaging
- Medication management systems
Background:
- Community homecare services (CHS) are increasingly adopting multi-dose packaged medicines (MDPM) to mitigate medication errors.
- Limited understanding exists regarding the impact of MDPM on CHS routines and medication handling quality.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of MDPM on medication handling routines and quality within CHS.
- To assess the satisfaction levels of healthcare professionals with MDPM compared to traditional systems.
Main Methods:
- A study involving four CHS districts in Norway, including 27 general practitioners (GPs) and 121 nurses.
- Data collection through structured questionnaires and interviews, focusing on experiences and satisfaction with MDPM.
- Evaluation of MDPM's influence on collaboration among different healthcare personnel categories.
Main Results:
- A majority of nurses (76%) and GPs (56%) found medication control easier with MDPM (p=0.03).
- Significant improvements in routines were reported by nurses (84%) and GPs (52%) (p<0.001).
- While 73% of nurses and 78% of GPs felt more confident about prescribed medication delivery, 44% of GPs reported increased prescribing time.
Conclusions:
- MDPM generally enhances medication handling routines, quality, and safety in CHS.
- GPs expressed lower satisfaction than nurses, potentially due to fragmented collaboration across CHS districts.
- Implementing MDPM requires clear responsibility assignments and standardized collaboration protocols between GPs, CHS, and MDPM providers.
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