Description of an experimental hospital pharmacy management information system

The objectives, characteristics, and uses of hospital pharmacy work-measurement systems are discussed, and the development and operation of an experimental hospital pharmacy management information system (HPMIS) is described. Hospital pharmacy work-measurement systems are designed to measure and evaluate the productivity of a hospital pharmacy or group of pharmacies. Previous work-measurement systems used by hospital pharmacies have been too time consuming or imprecise for widespread use. A national hospital pharmacy work-measurement system known as HPMIS was developed to provide comprehensive and widely applicable information on pharmacy expenses, personnel use, and productivity. HPMIS converts data from participating hospitals into 17 indicators that enhance the comparability of the information between the hospitals. The 17 indicators relate to pharmacy production, clinical services, and administrative functions; also included are several gross department indicators that combine elements of all three areas. After analysis and categorization of the data according to characteristics such as bed size, geographical location, and type of drug-distribution system, results are reported to individual hospitals. A national work-measurement system such as HPMIS should enable hospitals to evaluate their pharmacy operations in relation to those of other hospitals and to track their department's relative management performance over time.