A follow-up phone call from a clinical pharmacist can benefit patients at risk of having medication-related issues after hospital discharge, a study published in the British Journal of Clinical Pharmacology found.
In the study, conducted at Antrim Area Hospital in Ireland, patients who received pharmacist follow-up calls were matched with patients in a control group. All participants had been prescribed multiple medicines for managing their medical conditions.
The pharmacist intervention decreased 30- and 90-day hospital readmission rates by 9.9 percent and 15.2 percent, respectively, compared to the control group.
The intervention also had positive effects on time to hospital readmission, length of hospital stay upon readmission, healthcare costs, patient beliefs about medicines, patient adherence to their medications and patient satisfaction.
"Many patients have difficulty in managing their medicines after discharge from hospital. Telephone follow-up allowed clinical pharmacists to give tailored support to patients according to their individual needs," said senior author James McElnay, PhD. "This simple intervention had very positive outcomes and was welcomed by patients. We are working to introduce this new approach into routine practice across the hospital service."