OBJECTIVES

This study aims to address the pharmacists’ potentiality for patient safety (PS) at hospitals implementing the preferential patient safety countermeasure fee (PPSCF) under the social insurance medical fee schedule.

METHODS

A nationwide questionnaire survey targeting 2,674 hospitals with the PPSCF was performed from 2010 to 2011. Out of the 669 hospitals that responded, the eligible 627 hospitals included 178 hospitals implementing PPSCF 1 with 400 beds or more (group A), 286 hospitals implementing PPSCF 1 with 399 beds or fewer (group B), and 163 hospitals implementing PPSCF 2 (group C). Then, “pharmacy practice” is divided into eight categories, 1) medication teaching and history taking, 2) brought-in drugs review on admission, 3) inquiry on prescription, 4) inquiry from out-of-hospital pharmacy, 5) drug information services, 6) mixing of anti-cancer drugs, 7) mixing of intravenous hyperalimentation (IVH) and 8) dispensing, prescription, management, etc.

RESULTS

Although the mean values of patient safety activities for nurses were the highest among physicians, nurses, and pharmacists, the values per person recalculated for pharmacists were the highest, and, the ranges of the values per person for pharmacists were narrowest across the three professional groups. For example, the number per person of incident reports filed in group A were 2.37±0.30 for pharmacists, 1.14±0.11 for physicians, and 2.09±0.31 for nurses, respectively (p=0.002). Those values for pharmacists were 2.37±0.30 in group A, 2.43±0.14 in group B and 2.35±0.19 in group C (p=0.802).

The proportion of time pharmacists spent was around 40% in each hospital group (p=0.864). Next was Medication teaching and history taking and the proportions of time spent were around 20% in each hospital group (p=0.610).

CONCLUSIONS : Pharmacists could have the most potential for patient safety across health professionals and pharmacy practice services that had been appropriately performed at hospitals irrespective of hospital scale.