Journal of Postgraduate Medicine, Education and Research

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VOLUME 54 , ISSUE 2 ( April-June, 2020 ) > List of Articles

Original Article

Evaluation of Drug-related Emergency Department Admissions in a Tertiary Care Hospital

Gautam Kumar, CVN Harish, Samir Malhotra

Keywords : Cross-sectional study, Drug-related admissions, Medication-related problems

Citation Information : Kumar G, Harish C, Malhotra S. Evaluation of Drug-related Emergency Department Admissions in a Tertiary Care Hospital. J Postgrad Med Edu Res 2020; 54 (2):29-33.

DOI: 10.5005/jp-journals-10028-1356

License: CC BY-NC 4.0

Published Online: 07-10-2020

Copyright Statement:  Copyright © 2020; The Author(s).


Abstract

Aims: To estimate the incidence, severity, preventability, and cost of medication-related problems. To classify patients admitted with medication-related illnesses based on causative factors. Study design: Single-center, cross-sectional, observational study. Materials and methods: Patient details were collected within 24 hours of admission into emergency. The causality assessment for adverse drug reaction (ADR) was assessed using the Naranjo scale. The modified Canadian emergency department triage and the acuity scale was used for assessment of severity of the ADR and the likely outcome. Results: We screened approximately 6,050 admissions; of them, 180 (2.97%) were related to medication-related problems. About 59 (32.8%) were classified as definitely preventable, 92 (51.1%) possibly preventable, and remaining 29 (16.1%) were not preventable. A total of 103 (57.2%) were categorized as severe, 76 (42.2%) as moderate, and 1 as mild. Average number of drugs received prior to admission was 1.29 (±1.15), which increased to 6.93 (±2.34) at the time of analysis. The median (range) cost of medications was $11.70 ($0.32–253.6) per patient per day. Conclusion: Considering the high number of patients admitted with severe illness at the time of admission and the prohibitive cost of medication, we can reduce the financial burden, morbidity, and mortality with drug-related admissions with proper and timely intervention. Also, the inappropriate use of complementary and alternative medications (CAM) should be controlled in order to reduce the incidence of medication-related problems. Clinical significance: Nonadherence and ADRs constitute majority of admissions due to medication-related problems.


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