Pharmacist-managed antimicrobial stewardship program for patients discharged from the emergency department.
Pharmacist-managed antimicrobial stewardship program for patients discharged from the emergency department.
Positive outcomes of antimicrobial stewardship programs in the inpatient setting are well documented, but the benefits for patients not admitted to the hospital remain less clear. This report describes a retrospective case-control study of patients discharged from the emergency department (ED) with subsequent positive cultures conducted to determine whether integrating antimicrobial stewardship responsibilities into practice of the emergency medicine clinical pharmacist (EPh) decreased times to positive culture follow-up, patient or primary care provider (PCP) notification, and appropriateness of antimicrobial therapy. Pre- and post-implementation groups of an EPh-managed antimicrobial stewardship program were compared. Positive cultures were identified in 177 patients, 104 and 73 in pre- and post-implementation groups, respectively. Median time to culture review in the pre-implementation group was 3 days (range 1-15) and 2 days (range 0-4) in the post-implementation group (P = .0001). There were 74 (71.2%) and 36 (49.3%) positive cultures that required notification in the pre- and post-implementation groups, respectively, and the median time to patient or PCP notification was 3 days (range 1-9) and 2 days (range 0-4) in the 2 groups (P = .01). No difference was seen in the appropriateness of therapy. In conclusion, EPh involvement reduced time to positive culture review and time to patient or PCP notification when indicated.
English
0897-1900
*Anti-Infective Agents/ad [Administration & Dosage]
*Bacterial Infections/dt [Drug Therapy]
*Drug Resistance, Microbial/de [Drug Effects]
*Pharmacists/st [Standards]
*Pharmacy Service, Hospital/st [Standards]
Adolescent
Adult
Aged, 80 and over
Aged
Case-Control Studies
Culture Techniques/mt [Methods]
Emergency Service, Hospital
Female
Follow-Up Studies
Hospitalization
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Patient Discharge
Retrospective Studies
Young Adult
MedStar Washington Hospital Center
Emergency Medicine
Journal Article
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Positive outcomes of antimicrobial stewardship programs in the inpatient setting are well documented, but the benefits for patients not admitted to the hospital remain less clear. This report describes a retrospective case-control study of patients discharged from the emergency department (ED) with subsequent positive cultures conducted to determine whether integrating antimicrobial stewardship responsibilities into practice of the emergency medicine clinical pharmacist (EPh) decreased times to positive culture follow-up, patient or primary care provider (PCP) notification, and appropriateness of antimicrobial therapy. Pre- and post-implementation groups of an EPh-managed antimicrobial stewardship program were compared. Positive cultures were identified in 177 patients, 104 and 73 in pre- and post-implementation groups, respectively. Median time to culture review in the pre-implementation group was 3 days (range 1-15) and 2 days (range 0-4) in the post-implementation group (P = .0001). There were 74 (71.2%) and 36 (49.3%) positive cultures that required notification in the pre- and post-implementation groups, respectively, and the median time to patient or PCP notification was 3 days (range 1-9) and 2 days (range 0-4) in the 2 groups (P = .01). No difference was seen in the appropriateness of therapy. In conclusion, EPh involvement reduced time to positive culture review and time to patient or PCP notification when indicated.
English
0897-1900
*Anti-Infective Agents/ad [Administration & Dosage]
*Bacterial Infections/dt [Drug Therapy]
*Drug Resistance, Microbial/de [Drug Effects]
*Pharmacists/st [Standards]
*Pharmacy Service, Hospital/st [Standards]
Adolescent
Adult
Aged, 80 and over
Aged
Case-Control Studies
Culture Techniques/mt [Methods]
Emergency Service, Hospital
Female
Follow-Up Studies
Hospitalization
Humans
Male
Middle Aged
Patient Discharge
Retrospective Studies
Young Adult
MedStar Washington Hospital Center
Emergency Medicine
Journal Article
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't