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.
IMPLANTATION OF A COMMUNICATION CIRCUIT OF ALERTS AND SAFETY NOTES RELATED TO DRUGS FROM THE PHARMACY DEPARTMENT (submitted in 2019)
European Statement
Patient Safety and Quality Assurance
Author(s)
Ignacio García Giménez, Natalia Martín Fernández, Olalla Montero Pérez, Ernesto Sánchez Gómez, Isabel María Carrión Madroñal
Why was it done?
The aim is to implement a protocol to follow when these safety notes/alerts are released from the AEMPS. It comprehends the reception of the information, its registration and its communication, when needed, to the rest of the healthcare professionals.
What was done?
A communication circuit of alerts and safety notes related to drugs coming from the “Agencia Española de Medicamentos y Productos Sanitarios (AEMPS)”.
How was it done?
At the reception of an alert from the AEMPS, the first step is to check if the drug has been acquired by the Pharmacy, and then act in accordance with the recommendations, informing the Departments in which the medication had been dispensed. If a drug must be retired and a stock break is generated, the healthcare professionals must be informed as well. Security notes from the AEMPS are published in the local hospital website, where the documents sent by the AEMPS can be found. If this medication is included in the Pharmacotherapeutic guide, a notification is shown when it is prescribed. Finally, all alerts and security notes, with the pharmacist intervention, are registered in a database.
What has been achieved?
Since the implementation of the circuit, 14 alerts and 9 security notes were sent from the AEMPS in a period of 6 months. No interventions regarding the alerts were needed. Healthcare professionals were informed when the security notes were released, pointing to the patients at risk, the precautions required and the alternative therapies available.
What next?
To incorporate it as an indicator of quality of care within the procedures performed by the pharmacy department and detect areas of improvement.