Program to disseminate information on new hospital pharmacy practices

A five-year program to stimulate interest in contemporary pharmacy practices and disseminate information to pharmacists and other health professionals in community hospitals throughout the State of Maine is described. Pharmacists from the New England Medical Center in Boston and the Maine Medical Center in Portland conducted a program from 1973 to 1978 that included consultative services, drug information, and continuing-education components. Pharmacy consultants visited about 50% of the hospitals in the state and met with the director of pharmacy, administrator, and director of nursing who received written reports of all findings and suggestions. Most frequently, hospitals requested recommendations on drug-distribution systems, design and use of medical profiles, and design of physician order forms. Surveys at the beginning and at the end of the program indicated that the number of hospitals with unit dose systems and i.v. admixture programs increased during the life of the program; pharmacy staffing levels also increased. The program successfully brought consultative services, drug information, and educational programs to pharmacists and other health professionals in community hospitals in Maine.