Evaluation of a post-discharge pharmacist opioid review following total knee arthroplasty: a pre- and post-intervention cohort study
Background More than 70% of patients continue to use opioid medications 3-weeks following total knee arthroplasty. Post-discharge pharmacist reviews improve medication management, however it’s effect on opioid usage is not known. Aim This study aimed to evaluate the impact of post-discharge pharmaci...
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| Published in: | International journal of clinical pharmacy Vol. 44; no. 6; pp. 1269 - 1276 |
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| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
| Format: | Journal Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Cham
Springer International Publishing
01-12-2022
Springer |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Get full text |
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| Summary: | Background
More than 70% of patients continue to use opioid medications 3-weeks following total knee arthroplasty. Post-discharge pharmacist reviews improve medication management, however it’s effect on opioid usage is not known.
Aim
This study aimed to evaluate the impact of post-discharge pharmacist review on opioid use following a total knee arthroplasty.
Method
A pilot, cohort pre- and post-intervention study was undertaken on patients who had undergone a total knee arthroplasty and were supplied an opioid upon discharge from hospital. During the intervention, patients were contacted via telephone by a pharmacist approximately five days post-discharge to review analgesic usage, provide education and advice and communicate an opioid management plan to their general practitioner. The primary endpoint was the percentage of patients taking opioids 3-weeks post-discharge. Secondary endpoints included: percentage of patients obtaining an opioid refill; patient satisfaction with opioid supply and the pharmacist review.
Results
Pre- and post-intervention, 63 and 44 patients were included, respectively. The percentage of patients taking opioids 3-weeks post-discharge declined from 74.6 to 29.6% (
p
< 0.001) and the percentage requiring an opioid refill from their general practitioner declined from 71.4 to 36.4% (
p
< 0.001). More patients were satisfied with opioid supply during the intervention period (79.5% cf. 47.6%,
p
= 0.001). Twenty-eight (63.6%) patients could recall the post-discharge pharmacist review, and all were either satisfied or extremely satisfied with the review.
Conclusion
Pharmacist-delivered post-discharge analgesia review reduced the percentage of patients taking opioids 3-weeks post-discharge following a total knee arthroplasty. This intervention has the potential to provide a smoother transition of care for patients supplied with opioids at the time of hospital discharge. |
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| Bibliography: | ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23 |
| ISSN: | 2210-7703 2210-7711 |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s11096-022-01455-y |