EVALUATION OF A PHARMACY RESIDENT INPATIENT ON-CALL PROGRAM

Pharmacy resident participants in an inpatient on-call program complet ed a total of 440 interventions in patient pharmacotherapy during a fi ve-month period. These interventions were used to evaluate the on-call program. Interventions were self-initiated (10 percent), solicited by physicians (31 percent) or by staff pharmacists (34 percent), and inv olved selection of proper dosage (52 percent), schedule (38 percent), drug level monitoring (20 percent), and route of administration (13 pe rcent). Detailed pharmacokinetic consultations were required in 24 per cent of the interventions. In 79 percent of the interventions, recomme ndations were accepted by the medical staff. The perceived impact of t hese interventions on the quality, cost of care, or both, occurred in 61 percent, two percent and 18 percent respectively. When ranked for c linical significance, 52 percent of the interventions brought patient care to acceptable standards, 18 percent prevented major complications and two interventions (0.5 percent) had life-saving potential.