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Effect of a Pharmacist Admission Medication Reconciliation Service at a Children's Hospital
Sara W Hovey1, Kristen W Click2, Jessica L Jacobson2
1Department of Pharmacy Practice (SWH), University of Illinois at Chicago, College of Pharmacy, University of Illinois Hospital & Health Sciences System, Chicago, IL.
Insights
A pharmacist-led admission medication reconciliation service significantly improved pediatric patient safety by identifying interventions in 69% of cases. This service also achieved an estimated cost avoidance of over $46,000 in just three months.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Healthcare
- Clinical Pharmacy
- Health Economics
Background:
- Medication errors are a significant concern in pediatric hospital admissions.
- Effective medication reconciliation is crucial for patient safety.
- Pharmacist involvement can optimize medication management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To assess the clinical impact of a pharmacist-led admission medication reconciliation service.
- To quantify the cost avoidance associated with this service in a pediatric hospital.
Main Methods:
- Prospective observational cohort study over 90 days.
- Real-time logging of pharmacist interventions during medication reconciliation.
- Retrospective collection of patient demographic data.
- Estimation of cost avoidance based on prevented adverse drug events (ADEs) using published literature.
Main Results:
- 283 admission medication reconciliations were completed.
- 69% of reconciliations required pharmacist intervention.
- Interventions impacted care for 21.9% of pediatric patients.
- 8 major adverse drug events were prevented.
- Estimated cost avoidance of $46,746.65 over the 3-month period.
Conclusions:
- Pharmacist-led admission medication reconciliation enhances medication safety in pediatric patients.
- The service demonstrates significant cost avoidance, justifying resource investment.
- Integrating pharmacists into admission medication reconciliation is clinically and economically beneficial.
Objective:
To evaluate the clinical effect and estimate cost avoidance attributed to a pharmacist-led admission medication reconciliation service at a children's hospital.
Methods:
This was a prospective observational cohort study that measured pharmacist interventions for pediatric patients over a 90-day period. Pharmacists logged all interventions identified during medication reconciliation in real time. Patient demographic data were collected retrospectively. Cost avoidance from prevented adverse drug events (ADEs) was estimated based on previously published literature.
Results:
Pharmacists completed 283 admission medication reconciliations during the study period. Of those, 69% of medication reconciliations required intervention. Interventions affected care during the hospital admission in 21.9% of patients and 8 medication reconciliations resulted in prevention of a major ADE. This pharmacist-led service resulted in an estimated cost avoidance of $46,746.65 in the 3-month period.
Conclusions:
Implementation of a pharmacist-led admission medication reconciliation service for pediatric patients improved medication safety and resulted in significant cost avoidance, which justifies investment in these pharmacist resources.
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