Abstract:
The main purpose of this study was focused on drug related problems those happened in patients who received parenteral nutrition and also aimed to study about indication, effectiveness, complication, and trend of acceptance of other health care practitioners after interventions for preventing or correcting drug related problems were provided by a pharmacist. This study was conducted from March to December 2004, 82 patients received parenteral nutrition at Bumrungrad Hospital, 42 of them were male (51.2%). The average age of these patients was 58+-13 years old. The most common disease in these patients is cancer which found in 39 patients (47.6%). Secondly, symptoms involved gastrointestinal tract were found in 19 patients (23.2%). Parenteral nutrition were given 122 times, 98 times (80%) and 24 times (20%) were partial and total parenteral nutrition, respectively. The most common indication (31.6%) for partial parenteral nutrition usage was patients can not eat or received enough enteral nutrition. About 40% of partial parenteral nutrition cases received adequate energy and protein from either parenteral or enteral nutrition. The most frequent complications seen in patient received partial parenteral nutrition were mild hyponatremia and hypokalemia. Gut obstruction was the most common reason (29.2%) for giving total parenteral nutrition. All total parenteral nutrition cases were given adequate energy and nutrients. Electrolyte imbalance was the most common complication (89 times). Total parenteral nutrition efficacy can be evaluated by weight change in 13 times of total parenteral nutrition given.There were only 2 in 13 times that patients gained weight. There were 9 from 24 times that patients can switch from total parenteral nutrition to enteral feeding. In this study, the pharmacist found 454 drug related problems, 372 (81.9%) of them were related to parenteral nutrition. One hundred and fifty four interventions were made by the pharmacist to either prevent or resolve drug related problems. One hundred and seventeen interventions (76%) were related to parenteral nutrition and 37 interventions (24%) were related to other drug therapy. Among these interventions, 68 were notified to doctors and their acceptance rate was 60.3%. Nurses and dietitians accepted all suggestion (74 and 12 times, respectively). There were numerous drug related problems seen in patients receiving parenteral nutrition. Pharmaceutical care for these patients was crucially needed. Other health care practitioners accepted the solutions proposed by the pharmacist. A pharmacist who provides pharmaceutical care for patients receiving parenteral nutrition should be able to make systematically plans, perform works routinely and co-operate with other health care team members well to prevent and correct drug related problems which might occur in this group of patients