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[Pharmaceutical Interventions in Benzodiazepine users during the COVID-19 Pandemic]
Daida Alberto-Armas1, Carmen Rubio-Armendáriz2, Verónica Hernández-García3
1Doctora en Ciencias Médicas y Farmacéuticas, Desarrollo y Calidad de Vida. Área de Toxicología. Universidad de La Laguna. Farmacéutica Comunitaria en San Cristóbal de La Laguna. Universidad de La Laguna España.
Introduction:
Pharmaceutical Intervention aims to optimize and rationalize the use, effectiveness, and safety of dispensed medications resolving drug-related problems (DRPs) and negative medicine outcomes (NMOs).
Objectives:
To evaluate Pharmaceutical Interventions in Benzodiazepines users during the COVID-19 pandemic from a Community Pharmacy.
Method:
Prospective observational, descriptive, and cross-sectional study (AEMPS code: DAA-CLO-2020-01) of Pharmaceutical Interventions offered by the community pharmacy between August 2020 and February 2021.
Results:
A total of 306 Pharmaceutical Interventions were conducted involving 127 patients. Health education and personalized medication information were the most common Pharmaceutical Interventions after detecting a high level of unfamiliarity with the Benzodiazepines among patients. Pharmaceutical Interventions leading to medical referrals accounted for 37.8% of the total, triggered by the detection of DRPs and/or NMOs or after identifying the patient as candidate for deprescription. These referrals included patients with a very high level of depression according to the Euroqol 5D-3L test. Pharmaceutical Interventions resulting in Medication Review with Follow-up Service were performed in 3.1% of patients. The patient acceptance rate of Pharmaceutical Interventions reached 98.4%.
Conclusions:
The high acceptance rate of Pharmaceutical Interventions reinforces the value of Community Pharmacy in optimizing and rationalizing Benzodiazepines usage, while strengthening the pharmacist-patient relationship. The COVID-19 pandemic posed challenges to pharmacist-physician collaboration despite of the availability of telecommunication protocols among healthcare professionals.
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