Objective: Home pharmaceutical care delivers individualised, whole-process and continuous pharmaceutical services and health education. This study aims to explore the feasibility of home pharmaceutical services as a combination of medical and nursing care.
Methods: Patient information was collected from 1 October 2020 to 30 September 2021 and was analysed and evaluated. We then developed a family medication plan and investigated its effectiveness and any issues encountered during the implementation process.
Results: A total of 102 patients received services, and 100% of the patients were satisfied with these. Moreover, using home pharmaceutical care saved approximately USD1,359.64 (RMB9,360.45) in outpatient costs and USD41,077.76 (RMB282,700) in inpatient costs, and the number of hospitalisations was reduced by 16%.
Conclusion: It is beneficial to make home pharmaceutical services available as a combination of medical and nursing care. Pharmacists can help patients solve medication-related problems and reduce the number of hospitalisations and medical costs through standardised service models while ensuring safe, effective, economical and rational drug use for patients.
Keywords: home care; home pharmacist; medical care; nursing; standard services.
© 2023 Zhang et al.