Pharmacist-driven renal dose optimization practice—outcomes of a retrospective study in ambulatory care settings

Abstract

Abstract Objectives Previous studies indicate a higher prevalence of inappropriate drug usage in patients with renal disease in ambulatory care settings and a higher rate of non-compliance with the renal dose adjustment protocol. This study aimed to investigate the number of renal dose adjustments recommended by pharmacists in ambulatory care settings, acceptance rate by the physicians and medications involved. Methods This two-year retrospective study was conducted in an ambulatory care pharmacy in a Saudi Arabian tertiary care hospital. Based on the renal protocol at the study site, the pharmacists recommended dose adjustments for inappropriate medication orders, and the outcomes were documented electronically. A quantitative descriptive analysis of this practice was performed by retrieving the pharmacists’ documentation from electronic health records. Only protocol-compliant recommendations with proper documentation were included in the study. Key findings A total of 302 renal dose adjustments were recommended by pharmacists for 269 patients involving 47 medications, with an average of 1.12 recommendations per patient. The average monthly recommendation was 12.58 (median: 11; SD: 5.174; 95% Confidence Interval (CI), 12 to 13.16). Of the 302 recommendations, 219 (72.52%) were accepted by the physician, and 71 (23.51%) were not. The most common medications accepted for renal dosage adjustment included levofloxacin (8.94%), metformin (5.29%), amoxicillin-clavulanate (5.29%), cetirizine (4.97%), diclofenac (4.64%), ciprofloxacin (3.97%) and nitrofurantoin (3.31%). Conclusions The pharmacist’s renal dose recommendations have a high acceptance rate in ambulatory care. This study demonstrated that ambulatory care pharmacists play a substantial clinical role in reducing inappropriate drug use in patients with renal disease.