Formulary management

The hospital formulary is not only a list of drugs, but also a policy that involves several complex processes and activities. Formularies are develope d based on cost-effectiveness evaluation, but maintaining cost-effectivenes s requires educational strategies. The clinical pharmacist plays an active role in formulary processes. These processes are discussed in this paper. T here is a need for studies on the cost-effectiveness of clinical pharmacy s ervices in support of the hospital formulary.