Estudi de la prescripció de medicaments en els dispositius d'atenció a la patologia urgent

by Vallès i Fernández, Roser

ENGLISH ABSTRACT "STUDY OF DRUG PRESCRIPTION IN EMERGENCY SERVICIES" Objective: To assess whether to distribute an informational poster/pamphlets to emergency services patients may increase the knowledge of doctor about patients allergy and concomitant medication and to increase the comprehension of patients about their prescription medication. Design: First phase: descriptive, cross-sectional, multicentric. Second phase: quasi-experimental, controlled, no randomized, multicentric. Setting: Five outpatient emergency services (ES) and one hospital ES in Vallès Occidental region (Barcelona). Participants: Patients with prescription medication seen at the ES between November of 1999 and July of 2000 (first phase), and between October of 2002 and April of 2003 (second phase). Intervention: To distribute the informational poster/pamphlets to intervention group patients. Main measurements: 1) Number of patients whom the doctor didnt know the patients allergy and/or concomitant medication. 2) Number of prescriptions what the patient correctly identified prescription medications dosage. The patients were interviewed. Statistical significance was examined by means chi-square test and Breslow-Day and Tarone test. Results: Data on 1233 patients, with an average age of 29 + 18 years, and 1766 prescription were collected. Compared with the first phase results, the intervention group decreased 25,5% (IC95: 33,5-17,5) of patients whom the doctor didnt know the patients concomitant medication and the control group decreased -12,5% (IC95: 19,8-5,2), p=0,024. Also, the intervention group incremented +16,8% (IC95: 9,8-23,8) of prescription what the patient correctly knew the prescription medication dosage and the control group decreased -1% (p<0,001). Conclusion: To distribute the informational poster/pamphlets to patients is effective to increase the patients knowledge about their medication and to improve the doctors information about concomitant medication of their patients.