Posts
Researchers at IDWeek 2012 have
stated that the use of electronic medical records (EMR) technology has reduced
medication errors among hospitalized HIV patients from 16 percent to 1.1
percent, a 93 percent reduction. Jean Lee, PharmD, clinical pharmacist for HIV
medicine at St. Mary’s Health Care in Grand Rapids, Mich., states that patients
living with HIV who are hospitalized for non-HIV illnesses often experience
errors with their medication, likely because of the complexity of their
antiretroviral regimens and the lack of familiarity with these among hospital
staff. Lee and colleagues reported on results of a small EMR study of 20
patients at IDWeek 2012. Lee noted that the use of EMR “improved patient safety
and showed a financial benefit” of approximately $25,000 for the hospital.
Other researchers reported that the
error rate experienced in Grand Rapids was considerably lower than errors in
prescribing drugs for HIV patients at the Cleveland Clinic and at the
University of Chicago. Elizabeth Neuner, PharmD, an infectious disease clinical
pharmacist at the Cleveland Clinic, found prescribing errors in approximately
half of 162 HIV patients over a 10-month period, and Natasha Pettit, PharmD, a
clinical pharmacy specialist at the University of Chicago, found a similar rate
of errors over an 18-month period for 155 patients receiving highly active
antiretroviral therapy at her institution.
Researcher Lee explains that the
majority of errors found in her study involve the timing of the patient’s
medications. For example, many HIV patients take their medications in the
evening, but while in the hospital may have been given them in the morning.
This could cause fluctuations in medication levels which could be problematic.
She also noted that hospitals often dose patients at 9 a.m. and 5 p.m., while
doctors often tell patients to take twice-daily medications twelve hours apart.
Lee went on to say that medication errors may lead to toxicity and decreased
efficacy of antiretrovirals, leading to potential development of viral
mutations to current therapy.
The Friends of AIDS Foundation is
dedicated to enhancing the quality of life for HIV positive individuals and
empowering people to make healthy choices to prevent the spread of the HIV
virus. To learn more about The Friends of AIDS Foundation, please visit:
http://www.friendsofaids.org.
TOGETHER WE REMAIN STRONG!
