SETTING: A tertiary medical centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
PARTICIPANTS: A total of 219 patients (range 23-80 years) who had received phosphodiesterase type-5 (PDE-5) inhibitors as ED treatment were evaluated.
INCLUSION CRITERIA: Adult patients aged ≥18 years, diagnosed with ED, and prescribed with sildenafil, tadalafil or vardenafil.
EXCLUSION CRITERIA: Patients diagnosed with ED but who did not receive any PDE-5 inhibitor, or those with missing data.
PRIMARY AND SECONDARY OUTCOME MEASURES: Factors associated with demographic and clinical characteristics as well as drug selection were assessed.
RESULTS: Ischaemic heart disease (p=0.025), benign prostatic hyperplasia (p<0.001), obesity (p=0.005), lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) (p=0.006) and α-blockers (p<0.001) were significantly associated with elderly patients with ED. Additionally, LUTS (p=0.038) and α-blockers (p=0.008) were significantly associated with the selection of PDE-5 inhibitor.
CONCLUSIONS: These data showed that elderly patients with ED were significantly associated with comorbidities and α-blockers, whereas LUTS and α blockers were associated with drug selection.
PATIENTS AND METHODS: This study involved direct, undisguised observations of drug administrations in two pediatric wards of a major teaching hospital in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. This study consisted of two phases: Phase 1 (pre-intervention) and Phase 2 (post-intervention). Data were collected by two observers over a 40-day period in both Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the study. Both observers were pharmacy graduates: Observer 1 just completed her undergraduate pharmacy degree, whereas Observer 2 was doing her one-year internship as a provisionally registered pharmacist in the hospital under study. A drug administration error was defined as a discrepancy between the drug regimen received by the patient and that intended by the prescriber and also drug administration procedures that did not follow standard hospital policies and procedures. Results from Phase 1 of the study were analyzed, presented and discussed with the ward staff before commencement of data collection in Phase 2.
RESULTS: A total of 1,284 and 1,401 doses of drugs were administered in Phase 1 and Phase 2, respectively. The rate of drug administration errors reduced significantly from Phase 1 to Phase 2 (44.3% versus 28.6%, respectively; P<0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that the adjusted odds of drug administration errors in Phase 1 of the study were almost three times that in Phase 2 (P<0.001). The most common types of errors were incorrect administration technique and incorrect drug preparation. Nasogastric and intravenous routes of drug administration contributed significantly to the rate of drug administration errors.
CONCLUSION: This study showed that sharing of the types of errors that had occurred was significantly associated with a reduction in drug administration errors.