Abstract

ASSESSMENT OF PRESCRIBING, DISPENSING AND PACKAGING PATTERNS OF ANTIBIOTICS IN TERTIARY CARE HOSPITAL

Ayesha Jamal*, Parisa Peivand Kermani, Mahendra Kumar B. J., Nisar Ahmed and Shahid Ashraf

ABSTRACT

Introduction: A Study on "Assessment of Prescribing, Dispensing And Packaging patterns of Antibiotics In Tertiary Care hospital" was carried out to find out indiscriminate use, drug misuse, and Incorrect prescribing of antibiotics that have resulted in drug- drug interaction, sub-optimal therapy, poly-pharmacy, medication failure, non-compliance, increased healthcare expenditure, multiple drug resistance as well as financial pressure on households and communities and most importantly increased occurrence of antibiotic resistance. Methodology: A prospective, observational and descriptive research was conducted for six months from Sept 2018 to Feb 2019 in the in-patient Departments of General medicine, Obstetrics and gynecology, Pediatrics, ICU and Surgery in CSI Holdsworth Memorial (Mission) hospital, a tertiary care hospital in Mysore District and in community pharmacies in Mysore, with the aim to evaluate the prescribing, dispensing and packaging patterns of antibiotics. The data on prescribing pattern of antibiotics by physicians, patient’s demographic details, complaints, past medical history, current medications along with their ADRs, dispensing pattern of antibiotics in pharmacies by pharmacists, and packaging patterns of antibiotics by manufacturers was collected. The Potential drug–drug interactions (DDIs) were identified using Medscape drug interaction checker. The data was Analyzed utilizing MS EXCEL and MS WORD. Results: This research features polypharmacy, overuse and inappropriate prescribing of antibiotics without prior culture sensitivity in hospital situations. Distributing antibiotics without prescription and by non-pharmacists are widespread in this sector. In the manufacturing sector, we invariably figured dissimilarity among the measure of doses and frequency of antibiotics prescribed by the physicians, when compared to the regular packaging sizes available as approved by guidelines for the most typically prescribed antibiotics. The research also indicates irrational use of antibiotics which may lead to antibiotic resistance. Conclusion: Public attention, sensitization of physicians, pharmacists and manufacturers for modification of prescribing, dispensing and packaging patterns of antibiotics is necessary for rational use of antibiotics. Excellence in healthcare can be boosted by improving the prescribing, dispensing and packaging pattern of antibiotics by physicians, pharmacists and by manufacturers in healthcare system. Establishing ideas and evaluating the excellence of care through performance analysis is the need of the hour in everyday hospital practice.

Keywords: Pharmacist, Tertiary care hospital, prescribing patterns, dispensing patterns, packaging patterns, irrational use.