Wednesday, November 03, 2010

Improving patient care and safety

From the Montreal Gazette:
Being admitted to the hospital for any reason can be scary. Amid the stress of the situation, it can be difficult to be your own advocate in terms of giving an accurate history and a list of current and past medications.

Having this information is hugely important for medical professionals in order to deliver the highest quality of care.

That's why the pharmacy department at the Jewish General Hospital (JGH) uses a medication reconciliation process to identify the pharmacological profile of each patient on admission, to help educate the patient about their meds, and provide the documentation necessary for treatment continuity during and after their hospital stay.

"It's very common that patients come in and they don't know the names or the doses of their medication" said Eva Cohen, Chief of Pharmacy at the JGH. "So we've implemented a process to harvest as much information as possible about their medications."

There are many things to consider when it comes to patients' past and present medications, so the pharmacy department uses a form called the Medication Reconciliation Form, on which the health care worker documents the Best Possible Medication History (BPMH). ...more

No comments: