NI pharmacists start managing medicines
A medication review service has just been launched
in Northern Ireland, Dr Denis Morrison, pharmaceutical director, Northern
Health and Social Services Board, Northern Ireland, explained during a
Young Pharmacists Group session on medicines management. The new service
is a medication review service for patients taking either cardiovascular
drugs, or six or more systemic medicines and having one or more risk factors
(eg, living alone, poor home support, recent hospital discharge or problems
with compliance).
Pharmacists wanting to provide the service and who
satisfy the entry criteria have to sign a contract and take part in an
awareness and training programme. Funding for the service has been obtained
from the Department of Health and Social Services and the Pharmaceutical
Society of Northern Ireland. Each pharmacist is paid £400 on signing the
contract. So far, over 100 pharmacists have signed up, but not of all
them are yet providing the service.
The service involves two medication reviews with
an approximate three-month gap between them and follow up after the second
review as appropriate. Pharmacists are paid £70 for the first review and
£40 for the second, and it is anticipated that participating pharmacists
will review about 20 patients a year.
The service is supported by standardised documentation,
including a 39-item questionnaire to identify medication related problems.
From these, pharmaceutical care issues are highlighted and entered on
to a care action plan.
Any medication related problems should be communicated
to GPs immediately, Dr Morrison said.
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