Hospital Pharmacist experience in the Intensive Care Unit: Plan COVID

• Published in: Farmacia hospitalaria : organo oficial de expresion cientifica de la Sociedad Espanola de Farmacia Hospitalaria Vol. 44; no. 7; p. 32
• Main Authors: García-Gil, Mario, Velayos-Amo, Carlos
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Spain 12-06-2020
• Subjects: Betacoronavirus; Coronavirus Infections - epidemiology; Coronavirus Infections - nursing; Coronavirus Infections - therapy; COVID-19; Critical Care; Decision Making; Disease Management; Equipment and Supplies, Hospital - supply & distribution; Health Services Needs and Demand; Hospitals, University; Humans; Intensive Care Units - organization & administration; Intensive Care Units - statistics & numerical data; Interdisciplinary Communication; Pandemics; Patient Care Team; Pharmaceutical Preparations - supply & distribution; Pharmacists; Pharmacy and Therapeutics Committee - organization & administration; Pharmacy Service, Hospital - organization & administration; Pneumonia, Viral - epidemiology; Pneumonia, Viral - nursing; Pneumonia, Viral - therapy; Professional Role; SARS-CoV-2; Spain - epidemiology; Spain
• ISSN: 2171-8695
• DOI: 10.7399/fh.11510

The Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the University Hospital of Fuenlabrada was  forced to critically increase its capacity in the COVID-19 pandemic. The objective of this work is to describe the activities promoted by the pharmacist in the care  of the critically ill patient in this context. A new organizational structure was  designed, analyzing the tasks necessary to make the processes profitable. Two  pharmacists joined the critical patient care to help the pharmacist who was  already integrated in the ICU team. The development of the operational  structure was carried out on three levels. The healthcare activity highlights the  daily participation of pharmacists in the two clinical sessions in which the ICU  teams evaluated all cases and made decisions. This in turn facilitated the  pharmaceutical validation that was carried out in the critical units themselves. In addition, one of the pharmacists created the Immuno-COVID Committee, in  which they participated together with different specialists for therapeutic  decision-making in the most complex cases. On the other hand, the availability  of human and material resources allowed the implantation of centralized  elaboration in the Pharmacy Service of many intravenous mixtures, including  antibiotics elastomers Pumps for continuous infusion, and non-sterile  elaborations. In logistics management, in addition to the acquisition of COVID- 19 therapies, the reconciliation with nursing activity stands out. The physical presence of the pharmacist favored the detection of needs, the  availability in time of medications in the unit, including sterile and non-sterile  preparations, and coordination with the central pharmacy. In knowledge  management, the participation of the pharmacist in the working group for the  development of the hospital management protocol COVID-19 stands out. The  daily presence in the unit and the joint work with the entire multidisciplinary team demonstrate the value that the pharmacist can bring. In addition to  efficient resource management, support for clinical decision-making and  improvement actions, it provides the climate of inter-professional trust necessary to respond to the complexity of the critical patient and promote joint  projects.