Evaluation of pharmacist-based compared to doctor-based anticoagulation management in Qatar

For over 60 years, warfarin has been the mainstay anticoagulant used in the outpatient setting for the prevention and treatment of a wide variety of thromboembolic clinical conditions. Guidelines recommend that health care providers managing oral anticoagulation therapy should do so in a systematic and coordinated fashion. Studies have shown that, when compared to traditional doctor-based anticoagulation management, pharmacist-managed anticoagulation services can improve patient outcomes. The first pharmacist-based anticoagulation clinic in Qatar was launched in 2013 at Alwakra Hospital. The primary objective of this research was to evaluate the impact of pharmacist versus doctor-based anticoagulation management on the percentage time under therapeutic INR (International Normalized Ratio; TTR), INR within therapeutic range and the extreme out of range INRs.

A retrospective cohort study was designed to compare the anticoagulation control of pharmacist-based warfarin clinic to the usual doctor-care.

Data from 278 patients taking warfarin (78 managed at pharmacist and 200 at doctor-based clinic) were evaluated. Subjects followed at the pharmacist-based clinic had a superior TTR compared to those managed at the doctor-based clinic (81.8% vs. 69.8%, P < 0.001). Additionally, the percentage of visits within therapeutic range were significantly higher in the pharmacist's group compared to doctor's group (76.5% vs. 71.2%, P = 0.011). At the same time, percentage of visits with extreme subtherapeutic INR was reduced in the pharmacist-managed clinic (5.17% vs. 7.05%, P = 0.007) CONCLUSIONS: Our study indicates that pharmacist-based anticoagulation has better INR control when compared to the traditional anticoagulation management. Pharmacist-managed anticoagulation clinics should be considered and supported for warfarin management.