Reporting adverse drug reactions on a geriatric ward: a pilot project.
OBJECTIVE
To test a method for registration of adverse drug reactions (ADRs) resulting in hospital admission and of ADRs occurring during hospital stay. Spontaneous reporting was compared with data from patient interview.


METHODS
Spontaneous reporting of ADRs by nurses and physicians, as well as patient interviews by pharmacists. This pilot project was carried out in the geriatric ward of the Ghent University Hospital over a period of 8 months in order to develop suitable registration forms and to test feasibility. Causality, severity, type and level of intervention of the reported ADRs were analysed. Reports from physicians and nurses were compared with the data obtained by patient interviews.


RESULTS
During the 8 months, for 168 patients, 12 spontaneous reports were received from physicians and nurses. Fifty-six of these patients were interviewed and 32 ADRs were reported. Only 2 ADRs detected by patient interview were also reported spontaneously. The interviews of the 56 geriatric patients indicated that 20% of them were admitted to the hospital because of an ADR. ADRs occurred during hospital stay in another 20% of those patients.


CONCLUSIONS
Spontaneous reporting by physicians and nurses revealed considerably fewer ADRs than patient interview by pharmacists. Physicians and nurses reported the more serious ADRs that occurred during hospital stay, whereas the interviews revealed more ADRs that caused hospital admission. Our data confirm that ADRs are an important cause of hospital admission of geriatric patients and occur frequently during their hospital stay.
Somers
Annemie
A
Department of Pharmacy, Ghent University Hospital, De Pintelaan 185, 9000 Ghent, Belgium. annemie.somers@uzgent.be
Petrovic
Mirko
M
Robays
Hugo
H
Bogaert
Marc
M
D016907:Adverse Drug Reaction Reporting Systems / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001530:Belgium; D064420:Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions; D005260:Female; D006760:Hospitalization / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006785:Hospitals, University; D006801:Humans; D007297:Inpatients; D007902:Length of Stay; D008297:Male; D008505:Medical Staff, Hospital; D009741:Nursing Staff, Hospital; D010595:Pharmacists; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011446:Prospective Studies