Journal of Pharmacovigilance

Abstract

National Survey of Drug Information Centers Practices: Hospital Formulary System at Ministry of Health Hospital in Saudi Arabia

Yousef Ahmed Alomi, Saeed Jamaan Alghamdi and Radi Abdullah Alattyh

Objective: To explore the National Survey of Drug Information Centers practice in Saudi Arabia: Hospital Formulary System at Ministry of Health Hospital.

Methods: It is a cross-sectional four months national survey of Drug Information Services at Ministry of Health. It contained ten domains with 181 questions designed by the authors. It derived from Internal Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP), American Society of Health-System Pharmacists best practice guidelines. This survey distributed to forty hospital pharmacies that run drug information services. In this study, the domain Drug Monitoring and Patient Counseling System explored and analyzed. It consisted of eight questions about the written policy and procedure and application methods for Hospital Formulary System at MOH in the drug information centers. All analysis is done through survey monkey system.

Results: The survey distributed to 45 of hospitals, the response rate, was 40 (88.88%) hospitals. The highest score of Hospital Formulary System at MOH was the Hospital Formulary should have the following information; generic name, dosage form, strength, therapeutic classification and prescribing information did not exist in 3 (7.5%) hospitals while only 24 (60%) of hospitals 100% applied the elements. The highest scores of DIC has a system for handling non-formulary drug requests was Non-formulary drug request form is available did not exist in 2 (5%) hospitals while only 24 (62.5%) of hospitals 100% applied the elements. The highest scores of DIC has a system for using formulary drugs for unapproved indications was the written multidisciplinary Internal policy and procedures for using formulary drugs for an unapproved indication and/or investigation did not exist in 7 (17.5%) hospitals while only 18 (45%) of hospitals 100% applied the elements.

Conclusion: There was an inadequate implementation of hospital drug formulary system in drug information centers practice. Establishment of educating and training of drug information pharmacist on the hospital drug formulary system with close monitoring will improve the network of drug information centers services at MOH hospitals in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.