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Published on: September 10, 2018
Promoting safe medication use during breastfeeding: uncontrolled interventional before-after study in community
Milena Kovačević1, Ljiljana Stanković2, Branko Petrović2
1University of Belgrade-Faculty of Pharmacy, Department of Pharmacokinetics and Clinical Pharmacy, Vojvode Stepe 450, 11221 Belgrade, Serbia.
Background:
Due to a lack of information or unreasonable fear of the effects of medication, breastfeeding mothers either stop taking medication or discontinue/interrupt breastfeeding while taking medication.
Aim:
The aim of the study was to investigate and evaluate the role of community pharmacists in promoting safe medication use among breastfeeding mothers through evidence-based interventions.
Methods:
The prospective uncontrolled interventional before- and after- study was conducted in 2022. The first phase involved a one-day comprehensive training session for community pharmacists. The second phase involved the provision and documentation of pharmaceutical care services.
Findings And Discussion:
A total of 1243 breastfeeding mothers participated in the study. Allergy, pain, sore throat, cough and urinary tract infections were the most common complaints. A total of 746 mothers (60.0 %) had been prescribed a medication while breastfeeding. The most commonly used medications were anti-infectives (15.1 %) and medications for respiratory system (10.9 %). Just over half of mothers stated that they had not received specific advice from their doctor about taking medication while breastfeeding (52.8 %). Pharmacists offered various interventions, such as dispensing a prescribed medication accompanied by breastfeeding counselling (41.8 %), recommending a change to a medication or supplement for safety reasons (15.3 %) and tailored recommendations for monitoring the infant (40.1 %). Pharmacist interventions, including the use of alternative medications/supplements, resulted in a decrease in the frequency of high-risk medications (from 1 % to 0.3 %, p < 0.001).
Conclusion:
Community pharmacists play an important role in the care of breastfeeding mothers. In addition to providing breastfeeding counselling and support, community pharmacists significantly improved the safety of medications taken by using relevant sources of information.
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