[Pharmacoeconomical evaluation of clinical pathway in gastrectomy patients].
The aim of the present study was to ascertain the pharmacoeconomical efficacy of a clinical pathway (CP) employing medication management and instruction tasks (i. e. pharmaceutical care and counseling for inpatients) in gastrectomy patients. Pharmaceutical services of a uniform quality were provided. These included a CP check sheet, medication management, and a history of the drugs chiefly prescribed by pharmacists. As a result, the average number of hospitalized days among the patients who were offered pharmaceutical care compared with those who were not was significantly shortened from 35.4 days to 26.1 days (P<0.001). Moreover, the average cost of medication was also significantly reduced from 270,631 yen to 190,331 yen (P<0.05). These data provide the first evidence that a CP employing medication management and instruction tasks for gastrectomy patients may play a substantial role in saving on medical costs.
Ise
Yuya
Y
Section of Pharmceutical Service, Nippon Medical School Hospital, Tokyo, Japan. yuyai@aioros.ocn.ne.jp
Honjo
Kazuyoshi
K
So
Shizuka
S
Senoo
Makoto
M
Katayama
Shiro
S
Hirano
Masaaki
M
Mitsuhashi
Kyoko
K
Yoshiyuki
Toshiro
T
Kiyama
Teruo
T
D000368:Aged; D003376:Counseling; D019091:Critical Pathways / Q000191:economics; D005260:Female; D005743:Gastrectomy; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010593:Pharmaceutical Services; D011182:Postoperative Care / Q000191:economics*