[Computerized prescription for medical devices: examples, interest and limits]

Area of Science:

• Medical device management
• Healthcare informatics
• Clinical pharmacy

Context:

• Hospital good practice contracts necessitate standardized medical device prescriptions.
• Current prescription methods may not fully capture essential data for high-risk devices.
• The study addresses the need for improved safety and cost-effectiveness in medical device management.

Purpose:

• To implement and evaluate a computerized prescription system for medical devices.
• To improve the safety and efficiency of prescribing high-risk medical devices.
• To explore the role of clinical pharmacy in medical device management.

Summary:

• A computerized protocol was developed for Negative Pressure Wound Therapy (NPWT), detailing necessary items for its safe use.
• A pre-existing questionnaire for Drug-Eluting Stents (DES) was updated to include critical information like prescriber/patient details, wound characteristics, and DES specifics.
• The study successfully adapted existing methods for computerized medical device prescription.

Impact:

• Computerized prescriptions can enhance patient care safety and reduce budget impacts for high-risk, expensive medical devices.
• This system is poised to become a gold standard for monitoring fee-for-service medical devices in France.
• The study identifies a new area of practice for hospital pharmacists in managing medical devices.