Continuity of care from acute to ambulatory care setting

Pharmacists' perceptions of a pharmacy-to-pharmacy referral form designed t o promote continuity of care for patients being discharged from a hospital were studied. Patients being discharged from a nonteaching, tertiary care hospital to a p rivate residence and having at least one prescription for a new medication were invited to participate in the study. A pharmacy-to-pharmacy referral f orm was completed on the basis of each patient's medical record and dischar ge orders. Patients were provided with a copy of the form and told to give it to their community pharmacist with their discharge prescriptions; an add itional copy was mailed the same day to the pharmacy. The pharmacist was in structed to telephone the hospital pharmacy on receipt of the form to sched ule a telephone interview. A total of 127 patients were enrolled in the study; the average number of d ischarge medications per patient was 4.8. A total of 120 interviews were co nducted with 91 community or ambulatory care pharmacists. In 102 cases (85% ), the pharmacists indicated that the referral form provided information th at resulted in a benefit to the patient through indication-specific counsel ing. In 104 cases (87%), pharmacists indicated that the form provided infor mation that had a positive impact on patient-pharmacist interactions, and 7 5 interviews (62%) indicated that pharmacists were able to incorporate the information into a database to direct future patient care. Community and ambulatory care pharmacists who received information from hos pital pharmacists about patients being discharged from the hospital reporte d that the information aided in patient care.