DRUG-USE EVALUATION OF CIPROFLOXACIN - IMPACT OF EDUCATIONAL EFFORTS ON APPROPRIATENESS OF USE

Objective: To evaluate the appropriateness of ciprofloxacin use in a 5 50-bed general hospital before and after an educational intervention. Method: A drug use evaluation was carried out for 6 weeks, to examine the appropriateness of initiating therapy with ciprofloxacin, as judge d by compliance with the hospital's protocols for antibiotic use. The results were distributed to all the hospital physicians, together with a review of the usage guidelines. Four months later the survey was re peated to examine the effects of this educational effort on the patter ns of use. Results: During the initial survey, 115 patients were treat ed with ciprofloxacin. During the follow-up 126 patients were treated with ciprofloxacin. The percentage of unjustified use had decreased fr om 31% to 13% at follow-up (P<0.005). Improvement was seen in all the hospital departments needing improvement and most significantly in the medical departments. The most frequent indication for use of the drug was urinary tract infection (86 patients (36%) in total in the two st ages). The most significant improvement was in justified usage for uri nary tract infections: from 65% in the initial stage to 88% in the sec ond stage (P<0.025). Conclusion: This study indicates that performing a drug use evaluation and distributing the results to the doctors conc erned has a beneficial effect on the appropriateness of drug use and p rovides an important tool for identifying the main problems in prescri bing, so that educational efforts can be focused.