Implementation and Evaluation of Safe and Whole-Course Based on Internet Hospital Outpatient Pharmacy Services: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study (Preprint)

Abstract

The development of telemedicine and eHealth services has led to the rapid growth of Internet hospitals worldwide in recent years, which have played a significant role during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, little is known about the characteristics and safety of internet hospital outpatient pharmacy services (IHOPS), which represent a new model of pharmaceutical services.

This study aimed to reveal the comprehensive characteristics and safety of whole-course-based internet hospital outpatient pharmacy services in a general tertiary hospital in western China.

A whole-course-based internet hospital outpatient pharmacy service mode was established. A total of 373,936 online prescriptions from February 2020 to January 2023 were analyzed, which included information on patients, prescriptions and deliveries, the error rate of prescription reviews and medicine dispenses, the economic value, and the degree of patient satisfaction.

During the study, a total of 373,936 prescriptions, including 351,884 patients and 945,172 medications, were delivered to 22 provinces, 5 autonomous regions, and 4 municipalities in China. This service saved a total of more than 320,376 days (7,689,036 hours) and RMB 94.05 million in costs for patients. The error rates of prescription review and dispensing were 0.0011% and 0.0008%, respectively. In terms of department distribution, the infectious diseases department (n = 63,903, 17.09%) ranked first for the third year in a row. Among the 373,936 delivered prescriptions, 90.15% (337,104/ 373,936) were sent to Sichuan.

The IHOPS was found to be efficient, convenient and safe because it handled the challenge of precisely and safely delivering medications to patients on time during the COVID-19 pandemic and its end. The widespread use of the IHOPS could help alleviate pressure on pharmacists offline, as pharmacists have more energy to provide more professional services. To provide patients with safe and convenient pharmaceutical services beyond geographical and time-related limitations. This model is a useful reference for policymakers to support the development of internet pharmaceutical services. Further efforts need to regulate and standardize the management of this novel pharmaceutical service.