EAHP represents over 29,000 hospital pharmacists across 36 member countries. EAHP represents and develops the hospital pharmacy profession within Europe in order to ensure the continuous improvement of care and outcomes for patients in the hospital setting. This is achieved through science, research, education, practice, as well as sharing best-practice and responsibility with other healthcare professionals.
The EAHP Board, elected for three-year terms, oversees the association’s activities. Comprising directors responsible for core functions, it meets regularly to implement strategic goals. Supported by EAHP staff, the Board controls finances, coordinates congress organization, and ensures compliance with statutes and codes of conduct.
The EAHP staff supports the Board in executing EAHP’s mission. The Staff assists in financial management, events organisations, policy activities and all EAHP projects. The EAHP staff works closely with EAHP’s members and ensures the effective communication all relevant stakeholders.
The first member countries were Belgium, Britain, Denmark, France, the Federal Republic of Germany and The Netherlands in 1972. EAHP has now 36 EAHP members and 2 Associate Members. EAHP is open to countries members of the Council of Europe and since 2022 to organisations representing the interests of hospital pharmacists from outside the Council of Europe (Associate Membership)
EAHP’s structure is also composed by different standing committes: EAHP Scientific Committee, EAHP Education Executive Committee and the EAHP CTF Steering Committee.
At EAHP, we are committed to transparency in our governance, ethical standards, and funding practices. This section provides open access to our foundational documents, including the EAHP Statutes, Code of Conduct, and Funding Sources. By sharing these resources, we aim to uphold accountability and foster trust with our members, partners, and the public.
Keep up with all EAHP’s events and webinars. Contact the team at info@eahp.eu should you have any questions about upcoming events or activities.
Here you can find all upcoming events organised by EAHP and by all its members and associate members. Do not hesitate to contact the events team at events@eahp.eu should you have any questions about the organisation of these events.
Hospital pharmacists conduct a critical role in the care of patients in hospitals. Learn more about what they do here and in all the pages under Hospital Pharmacy practice and Policy.
Self-Assessment
SILCC
Closed SIGs
EAHP brings together experts from many areas of hospital pharmacy practice providing and highlighting good local sustainable practices as that can be up-scaled and shared with other countries. The EAHP Working Group on Sustainability has the aim of reducing the environmental burden of the hospital pharmacy services.
The European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP), and its 36 member country platforms are creating a Common Training Framework for the hospital pharmacy education in Europe. The goal of this project is to allow the free movement of hospital pharmacists within the European Union.
The European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP) and the European Society of Clinical Pharmacy (ESCP) have collaboratively developed the Oath to Society. The Oath to Society is all encompassing and acts as a contract for excellence in providing compassionate patient care, working as part of the healthcare team and advancing the pharmacy profession, and showcasing how clinical and hospital pharmacists work every day
A day created to highlight the importance and to celebrate the work done by hospital pharmacies. This day celebrates all hospital pharmacy teams.
Catch up with EAHP’s press releases
Find all EAHP relevant publication like the EAHP Surveys, annual reports and the history books.
The European Journal of Hospital Pharmacy (EJHP) is the only official journal of the European Association of Hospital Pharmacists (EAHP) and is committed to advancing the science, practice and profession of hospital pharmacy. As the premier communication platform for hospital pharmacists worldwide, EJHP is a major source for continuing education as well as updates on advances in the practice and standard of pharmaceutical care for patients.
When EAHP and Hospital pharmacists appear in the news.
EAHP publishes a monthly EU monitor with updates about the latest EAHP initiatives and information relevant for the hospital pharmacy profession.
Sponsor Channel
The Sponsor Channel is designed to maximise visibility and engagement, allowing sponsors to connect with the hospital pharmacy community and partners in a dynamic and interactive environment. From product demonstrations to networking sessions, the Sponsor Channel offers a range of opportunities for sponsors to showcase their offerings and generate leads in the new EAHP Website.
Education and Research
Agnese Bosio, Chiara Carcieri, Sixberth Bugeraha, Silvia Scalpello, Giovanna Fazzina, Maria Carmen Azzolina, Gianluca Miglio, Annalisa Gasco
Drug dispensing and patient monitoring are institutional activities of hospital pharmacists worldwide. Nevertheless, the enhancement of managerial capabilities, hard and soft skills is crucial to tackle the critical challenge arising from geographical, epidemiological, demographic, cultural and legislative differences between different countries.
An initiative for cooperation and interaction between hospital pharmacists from different income countries has been developed.
The initiative was led by a pharmacist from an Italian hospital who was hosted by a hospital in southern Tanzania and spent a month collaborating with local hospital pharmacists, in order to streamline integrated workflows and optimise clinical care outcomes and professional training.
A Strengths Weaknesses Opportunities Threats (SWOT) matrix was developed to assess the impact on three main areas: drug management, clinical pharmacy and pharmaceutical care.
Strengths: attitude for workflow standardisation, multidisciplinary and multicultural teamwork, sharing of expertise and best practice, speed up of limiting processes in order to develop activities in support of patients and clinicians, time and effectiveness in qualified staff training.
Weaknesses: complexity of procedures for drug import, hospital staff shortage (both pharmacists and physicians), absence of primary care and hospital-territory continuity of care network, clinical severity of patients admitted to hospital, imbalance between clinical pharmacy/pharmaceutical care in favour of drug management.
Opportunities: professional growth due to new healthcare challenges facing, soft skills improvement (problem solving, versatility, working under stress, teamwork, integration, overcoming prejudices), hard skills enhancement (logistics, international legislation, scientific English), budget optimisation for new investments (equipment/staff), improvement of patient safety and overall level of care.
Threats: language/cultural barriers, variable learning curve and resistance to change, barriers in social/professional relationships, individual variability in adaptation period, different patient perceptions of health and medical care.
Professional integration of hospital pharmacists from different educational and cultural backgrounds could enhance their ability to address different clinical, environmental and socio-economic issues, with the following outcomes: strengthening the professional pathway; optimising outcomes with consequent cost savings; improving the quality of healthcare for patients.
Patient Safety and Quality Assurance
AMINE BAYEN, OUMAIMA KHARKHACH, HICHAM EL HORR, LHOUSSAIN ZARAYBY, SANAE DERFOUFI
It has been observed that within the gastroenterology, neurology, internal medicine, rheumatology, and dermatology departments, there exist inconsistencies and disparities. These include extended transportation times averaging 8 minutes, a lack of isothermal bags for transportation, and refrigerators not connected to the main hospital generator.
Strict adherence to storage guidelines is crucial, as any breach in the cold chain could compromise the drug’s therapeutic effectiveness, increase the risk of adverse effects, and lead to significant financial losses for healthcare institutions.
Ensuring optimal storage and transportation conditions for biotherapy drugs in various medical departments within a university hospital by assessing and improving cold chain compliance.
Implemented corrective actions and recommendations have been primarily directed towards minimizing transportation duration and procuring thermal bags for all departments handling biotherapy products. These initiatives encompass enhancing staff awareness in the cold chain process through sensitization campaigns and regularly evaluating refrigerator temperatures. Moreover, a strategic plan is underway to establish their connectivity to the generator system in the near term.
A notable reduction in the transportation time of biotherapeutic drugs has been achieved, decreasing the average duration from 8 minutes to 6 minutes. Additionally, the widespread adoption of thermal bags across audited departments has substantially bolstered the stability of biotherapeutic drugs, mitigating temperature fluctuations and enhancing patient safety. Moreover, our efforts in sensitising medical and pharmaceutical staff within these departments have yielded a significant increase in awareness and adherence to stringent cold chain protocols.
The inconsistencies and disparities identified during the assessment of the biotherapy drug cold chain within our hospital suggest a potential lack of adherence to procedural standards. This situation poses a considerable risk to patient safety, warranting further investigation and action.
Our focus will extend beyond the cold chain assessment to evaluate other pharmaceutical procedures. Specifically, we will investigate the adherence to autoclave sterility cycles for medical devices and the robustness of the preparation process for oncology medicines.
Clinical Pharmacy Services
Sara Rodrigues, Sofia Pinheiro, Vandewalle Björn, Paulo Martins, Sofia Ferreira, Paulo Pereria, Jorge Félix
Shared decision-making between pharmacists and physicians is key to PTC functioning and efficiency. Responsibilities include managing policies and procedures for appropriate use of high quality and cost-effective health technologies at hospitals. PTC performance is paramount to overall hospital efficiency.
This project seeks to assess and redesign (optimize) existing Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committees (PTC) procedures within a University Hospital Centre (UHC – six public hospitals). The goal is to enable sound decision-making that significantly contributes to UHC key performance indicators, all while ensuring timely patient access to effective medication.
The project comprises four phases: (1) gathering feedback from stakeholders (PTC members; hospital service/pharmaceutical department directors) regarding their current involvement in PTC information flows, procedures, and decision-making; (2) developing a value-based criteria-matrix, across stakeholders, in a multiple-criteria decision analysis context, to guide future PTC decision-making; (3) rethinking PTC procedures and information flows; (4) assessing the effectiveness of the redesigned PTC model after 12 months. First phase included: a Likert-scale based survey1 for PTC members to evaluate their involvement in activities described in the internal PTC regulation, and a semi-structured interview-based survey2 for all stakeholders to characterize existing information flows and PTC mediated decision-making processes.
First phase: eight of 10 PTC members participated in survey1. Activities with 100% engagement of PTC members: prescription reviews; coordination with National PTC; monitoring of medicine utilization, antibiotics resistance and safety; advise the UHC management board. Activities with major non-engagement: monitoring/reporting of complementary diagnostics prescription (87.5%); medication therapy management programs (62.5%); National pharmacovigilance system activities (62.5%); therapy cost assessment (50%). In survey2 (n=14) authorization process for medicines utilization was accurately characterized, clearly identifying responsibilities for all clinical and pharmaceutical departments. Heterogeneity exists between urgent and non-urgent utilization requests. PTC members and pharmacy departments were more likely to use electronic platforms than clinical departments.
Next phases are under way to better support current competencies, information flows, procedures, and the shared decision-making processes offering an opportunity to rethink the PTC procedures in the University Hospital Centre and leverage efficiency over hospital complexity.
Education and Research
Stine Hygum Sørensen, Henrik Nielsen, Ulla Kloster, Anne Grethe Nørgaard Kyndi, Maja Vad Mortensen, Dorthe Ludvigsen
The concept of medicine at Gødstrup Hospital is based on Patient involvement in the medicine process. Consequently, the patients bring their own medicine, which is stored in the patient’s room, and additional medicine is supplied in original packages. Medicine dispensing is performed in the patient’s room to allow patient participation. The medicine rooms at the hospital are quite small, because the majority of the medicine is with the patient, but it also makes medicine rooms unsuited for on-site training of new nurses.
Virtual Reality (VR) technology was applied for introduction of newly hired nurses to medicine rooms at the hospital.
Newly hired nurses are given a four hour introduction to the concept of medicine at Gødstrup Hospital, Denmark. The introduction is given by an interdisciplinary team of a clinical pharmacist, a pharmacologist and an experienced nurse. The introduction is given in collaboration with the Centre for Research and Education (NIDO) once a month. This ensures that newly hired nurses are given the same, relevant introduction when needed.
Introduction to medicine rooms is part of the training for nurses in introductory positons. Using VR newly hired nurses are given a different and exciting introduction to medicine rooms.
In collaboration with the simulation unit at NIDO we made a VR-video to enable up to 20 new nurses to see the same introduction at the same time. Hospital Pharmacy staff is featured in the VR recording and guides viewers to specific parts of the medicine room, explaining important topics such as waste disposal, hygiene and anatomical therapeutic chemical (ATC) groups.
The participants are positive and give the following feedback to the VR segment of the introduction: “It was significantly easier to deal with as a newbie”. “It was very visual as being there in reality”. “There was time to learn in a calm environment”, “It worked fine as a lesson” and “It is a good change from backboard teaching.”
The monthly introductions continues and further collaboration with NIDO will result in lessons with topics such as pharmaceutical formulations and drug calculations. Perhaps VR will be included in this too.
Clinical Pharmacy Services
Nina RANJIT, Matthieu GALLET, Anthony TRIPLET, Myriam QUERMONNE , Alexandre COCHET
The rise of RLT is seeing the emergence of new treatments, using radioisotopes such as 177Lu or 223Ra. The radioactive nature of these treatments raises questions from patients. The aim of pharmaceutical consultations (PCs) is to respond to them by providing appropriate information on treatment modalities, adverse effects (AEs) and radiation protection rules. Thus, we carry out a PC at the initiation of an RIV for all new patients from January 2022 for PLUVICTO.
Radioligand therapy (RLT) consists of the administration of a radioactive drug. It makes it possible to treat cancer patients by specifically targeting tumour cells and destroying them using ionising radiation.
These particular treatments raise questions from patients. This is why we have implemented pharmaceutical interviews since 2022 and the beginning of RLT by PLUVICTO® during the first treatment, for all patients concerned. Subsequently, these consultations were extended to other therapies (lutathera, xofigo).
Before initiating RLT to a new patient, radiopharmacists check the eligibility of patients and the conformity of the indication. A few days before the first treatment, the patient’s file is consulted and important information is noted (urinary or fecal incontinence, digestive problems, biological assessment, co-medications). The day of the treatment, a personalized care plan is drawn up by the radiopharmacist and an information sheet bringing together information on the treatment (interval of treatments, dose, etc.), side effects and their management and the rules of radiation protection are provided. to the patient.
Collaboration with nuclear doctors has been set up to optimise patient care and information.
When necessary, pharmaceutical interventions are formulated directly to the clinician and plotted in a table.
Facing the success of these PCs we implement them for lutathera and xofigo, the two other RLT available.
In case of side effects, we also declare it to the pharmacovigilance service and give advice to patients and/or clinicians for manage them.
All documents are recorded in the computerised patient file.
The next step is to evaluate patient’s comprehension before the first interview to adapt its content to the patient.
We also would like to evaluate the patient’s satisfaction and expectations.
Discussions are underway to financially promote these tripartite consultations as exists for oral chemotherapy consultations.
Patient Safety and Quality Assurance
Almudena Ribed, Alvaro Gimenez-Manzorro, Beatriz Torroba-Sanz, Ana De Lorenzo-Pinto, Maite Portas-Gonzalez, Maria Dolores Ginel-Feito, Pilar Cabrerizo-Torrente, Maria Luisa Martin-Barbero, Ana Herranz-Alonso, Javier Hortal-Iglesias, María Sanjurjo-Saez
There is a high prevalence of medication errors in the perioperative setting. Health organizations highlight the need for effective practices to ensure safe medication use. A group of pharmacists, surgeons, anaesthesiologists, nurses, and IT technicians coordinated by the management was formed in 2020. Failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) of the perioperative use of drugs was performed in 2021. The group detected up to 25 failure modes and conducted a bibliographic review to gather and prioritise the implementation of safety practices.
We re-engineered the process of medication use in the perioperative setting, from pre-admission to discharge, and implemented safety practices to improve safe medication use in the daily practice.
Obstacles were overcome as a result of the multidisciplinary teamwork, management support and the safety culture existing in our hospital. In addition, we listened to health professionals’ opinions, provided monthly information sessions in the Anaesthesia and Pharmacist Department in 2022 and disseminated information through the hospital website.
Eight safety practices were implemented in daily practice:
1.Eight safety practices were implemented in daily practice:
1. Implementation of automated dispensing cabinets.
2. Identification and recommendations for high risk drugs.
3. Standardisation of anaesthesia and difficult airway trolleys.
4. Preparation of general anaesthesia trays with ready to administer drugs.
5. Design, development, and implementation of a one-step computerised provider order entry (CPOE) in the operating room, with bar code administration technology.
6. Implementation of a pharmaceutical care programme for surgical patients based on medication reconciliation in all transitions of care.
7. Implementation of new alerts in the clinical decision support system linked to the CPOE to improve pain, anticoagulation, and antibiotic management in the surgical patient during follow-up.
8. Development of new protocols for perioperative management of chronic medications, anticoagulation, diabetes, and antibiotic prophylaxis in the surgical setting.
The new medication-use process describes a practical and real approach to promote perioperative patient safety in the daily practice. Transfer into other centres is achievable by motivating healthcare professionals, engaging in safety culture and creating multidisciplinary alliances. There is a need to assess the impact and evaluate these safety practices to ensure ongoing improvement.
Clinical Pharmacy Services
Ann-Marie Goacher
To add expert pharmacy skills to the uveitis MDT. Provide pharmacist led improved education, compliance, monitoring, follow up and access via helpline for uveitis patients on immunosuppression.
Expansion of the uveitis (MDT) service to include a specialist pharmacist
COVID allowed us to pilot an innovative service enhancing uveitis patient care. An MDT was established consisting of a specialist consultant, two specialist doctors, optometrist and expert pharmacist in ophthalmology (EPO). The EPO supports weekly MDT sessions through establishing a patient helpline, standardised recorded counselling and on-going follow up of pharmaceutical needs of new and established patients. The main challenge was to obtain funding to maintain this service post COVID. Clinic space remains a challenge due to the limits imposed by the availability of rooms.
This innovative pharmacy service provides a blueprint for other specialities to incorporate expert pharmacy skills into the direct care of outpatients. Integration of the EPO into the uveitis MDT benefits clinicians by redirecting prescribing workload, reducing patient enquiries, improvements in clinic flow by moving patient counselling to the EPO and patient safety through instant access to pharmaceutical specialist knowledge. Initial informal MDT feedback has been positive.
Patients profit from access to EPO via the patient helpline. Analysis of 900 emails received over a 2-year period showed the main reasons patients contacted us were for enquires related to blood tests, medication supply, appointments, side effects, worsening symptoms and confirming instructions regarding medication. Feedback from a patient satisfaction survey overall was positive. Patients were asked to rate the service between 1 (poor) and 5 (excellent), with 31 patients responding. The results show access to the team was rated 4.6/5, satisfaction with the speed of the response was 4.29/5 and the quality of response was rated 4.48/5.
Improved IT databases is something for review, the main barrier being funding. This would make recording and auditing of patient interactions and data more robust. In the future I would like to see national guidance that recommends pharmacists as part of the uveitis MDT as standard.
Production and Compounding
Lucija Tominović Gjivić, Gabrijela Kos, Anita Šimić
In order to ensure correct use of voretigene neparvovec and minimise the risks associated with its administration, the product can be distributed only through treatment centres where qualified staff (vitreoretinal surgeons and pharmacists) have participated in the mandatory risk management plan (RMP) education program required by EMA.
Since voretigene neparvovec has to be transported and stored frozen at ≤-65 ºC, has short shelf life after dilution (4 hours), contains genetically modified organisms and must be handled according to local biosafety guidelines, there was a need for establishing standard operating procedures (SOPs) for each step of the treatment process.
The University Eye Clinic, University Hospital Sveti Duh in Zagreb, Croatia, was designated as the world’s 6th gene therapy centre in 2020.
Hospital pharmacists, as part of a multidisciplinary team, play an important role in preparation and administration of the gene therapy product voretigene neparvovec which is indicated for the treatment of patients with vision loss due to inherited retinal dystrophy caused by biallelic RPE65 (retinal pigment epithelium-specific 65 kilodalton protein) mutations.
The multidisciplinary team consists of a paediatric ophthalmologist, an inherited retinal disease specialist, retinal surgeons, pharmacists and nurses.
SOPs were created for: ordering process, storage of the product, coordination between members of the multidisciplinary team, preparation of the product, administration and disposal of waste.
Preparation of voretigene neparvovec is performed under aseptic conditions in a Class II vertical laminar flow biological safety cabinet (BSC) according to Pharmacy Manual which was ensured by the manufacturer.
Since 2020. there had been 47 dose applications of voretigene neparvovec (26 patients, Croatian and nonCroatian citizens).
The prevalence of inherited retinal dystrophy associated with biallelic RPE65 mutation is 1:200 000 and it is expected that there are 19 individuals (population of 3,8, million) with biallelic RPE65 mutation in Croatia, and 13 of them were detected since 2020.
There were no registered side effects which could be associated with errors during the preparation or administration of voretigene neparvovec.
With the increasing number of gene and cell-based therapies, the need for continuous education of hospital pharmacists and exchange their experiences is greater than ever.
Selection, Procurement and Distribution
Margaux DUFOSSE, Claire ANDREJAK, Abir PETIT
By May 2022, we learned about the sale discontinuation of oxygen humidifiers from one of the two manufacturers in our country, due to the constraints of MDR 2017/745. The second manufacturer restricts its products to hospitals with marketing partnerships. In our hospital, oxygen humidifiers are used regardless of the oxygenation medical device (nasal cannulas, masks, tubes or tracheotomy tube) or oxygen flow rate. We had to define indications and prescriptions to control consumption in our hospital.
To promote good use of oxygen humidifiers and control our consumption in a context of shortage we have drawn up a scientific explanatory document, a procedure and a prescription support.
We suppressed services’ allocations for humidifiers, to encourage prescription via the Electronic Patient Record. We set up a working group, including pharmacists, resuscitators, pulmonologists and nurses, to write a good use sheet, underlining high-priority medical indications taking account of scientific literature and respiratory medicine learned societies’ recommendations. To assess its effectiveness, we compared humidifiers’ consumption before and after we set it up and evaluate prescriptions’ number and conformity for the first 4 months, from May to September 2022.
The group restricted indications to paediatric patients, patients with tracheotomy and patients with oxygen flow rates above 5L/min and upper respiratory tract lesions such as nose bleeding, nasal discharge congestion, or nasal mucosa’s irritation or lesions. We wrote the good use sheet, mentioning the circuit’s montage and conditions for dispensing humidifiers. Before the new procedure, the mean consumption was 1,415 units per month, versus 39 per month from June. Regarding prescriptions’ conformity, 12 (8.7%) out of 138 were denied: six patients on ambient air, four with nasal cannula, one without any severity criteria, a not nominative prescription.
This collaborative and multidisciplinary work enabled a change in practices. Supply difficulties, initially seen as challenging, are a great opportunity to promote good use, and secure patient care. Although they have now been resolved, with a new supplier, we maintain our measures to ensure patients’ security and well-being.
Clinical Pharmacy Services
Daniele Mengato, Laura Camuffo, Anna Zanin, Fernando Baratiri, Barbara Roverato, Franca Benini, Francesca Venturini
PPC patients are children with chronic or terminal illnesses requiring a high intensity of care. Because of their criticality, a strict clinical monitoring is needed, as well as personalised therapeutic strategies.
The paediatric palliative care (PPC) unit aims to provide paediatric patients with the best possible care in the management of their disease to ensure the optimal quality of life. The pharmacist has joined the interdisciplinary team with the aim of improving drug management in both acute inpatient and chronic therapies.
From August 2021, the clinical pharmacist joined the PPC staff with the aim of improving medicine management. The pharmacist, primarily, took charge of the medication review process. Individual therapies were periodically reviewed by the multidisciplinary team on the basis of admissions and clinical changes. In addition, a formulary manual for healthcare professionals was drafted, with the description of the crushability of the most commonly used pharmaceutical forms in clinical practice by collecting and keeping up-to-date information from national and international handbooks.
Over the past eight months, initial drug reviews have been carried out for all 169 patients followed by the PPC unit, with collegial re-evaluations cyclically carried out for the most critical patients (15). These patients had at least 10 drugs to take each day and therefore assessments were made to simplify treatment regimens by providing 37 suggestions to physicians with the aim of reducing the risk of interactions and facilitating home therapy management. With regard to the handling of pharmaceutical forms, many galenic formulations have been proposed in order to reduce the crushing of solid forms as much as possible. Most of the suggestions were discussed and accepted by the medical team.
Clinical pharmacist’s intervention is crucial in the management of terminal or chronic therapies for critically ill patients. Next step will be the analysis of caregivers’ care burden, through a specific questionnaire that has already been validated, so as to improve the home management of this particular category of patients.
