Strategies for deleting popular drugs from a hospital formulary

The approach used by a hospital pharmacy in planning, implementing, and evaluating a major formulary revision and the strategies used in deleting popular analgesics from the formulary are described. All phenacetin-containing products were deleted from the formulary of The Ohio State University Hospitals. The following steps of the process are described; identification of the problem, literature evaluation, soliciting medical staff support, presentation to the pharmacy and therapeutics committee, designing an implementation timetable, education, monitoring analgesic use, coordination of departmental activities, implementation and follow-up. The strategy used in this case resulted in the policy being implemented successfully.