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A PHARMACIST IN THE MULTIDISCIPLINARY ONCOLOGY TEAM

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European Statement

Clinical Pharmacy Services

Author(s)

Ulrike Guger-Halper

Why was it done?

The pharmacy of the hospital supplies four hospitals with cytotoxic infusions. In the past it was found that the integration of a pharmacist in the oncology team brings benefits.

What was done?

Integration of a pharmacist in the oncology team

The aim was to evaluate the participation of a pharmacist in the multidisciplinary oncology team. The team consists of the clinical pharmacist, medical oncologists, residents, oncology nurses, dieticians, medical documentation assistent and a clinical psychologist.

How was it done?

Data were collected from May 2014 to September 2015.
All chemotherapy protocols were electronically prescribed in CATO® (computer aided therapy for oncology) and included cytotoxic drugs and concomitant medications.
In addition to production in the cytostatic unit the pharmacist participated in the daily morning meetings, the two-week tumor boards and bimonthly team meetings.
Pharmacist interventions (PI) took place during the meetings and were also communicated by phone and mails.

What has been achieved?

3335 cycles of chemotherapies were prescribed and 914 interventions were recorded.
CATO®-related PI (33,3%) were categorized in: literature research (4,7%), chemotherapy protocols (3,2%), dose selection (16,7%), treatment duration (1,4%), application/infusion time (0,9%) and others (6,4%).
Not CATO®-Related PI (66,7%) were categorized in: logistics (24,2%), patient-related (26%), drug-related (16,5%)
Under pharmaceutical participation: 15 guidelines, 1 abstract for a poster presentation, 27 work tools, 2 workshops, 2 publications, 1 lecture, 15 staff trainings, wipe samples in preparation

What next?

In this observational study we demonstrated the significant role of the clinical pharmacist as a part of the multidisciplinary oncology team. The supply by a pharmacist means to optimize treatment protocols and procedures and improving patient safety.
Medication errors occur despite electronic prescription of standardized protocols. Clinical pharmacists with special experience in oncology play an important role to identify errors in oncology.
A plausibility check by a pharmacist is still needed.

References: Sessions J. K. et al., Role of Oncology Clinical Pharmacists in Light of the Oncology Workforce Study, J Oncol Pract. 2010 Sep; 6(5): 270–272.

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