Double blind randomized controlled trial for subjects undergoing surgery receiving surgical antimicrobial prophylaxis at tertiary hospital: the clinical pharmacist's interventions

Effect of interventions on surgical site infections in Sub-Saharan Africa: a systematic review

BACKGROUND

Surgical site infections (SSI) are a major concern due to their contributions to morbidity, economic loss, and death among individuals who underwent operations in healthcare institutions. To decrease this infection, various pharmacological and non-pharmacological interventions have been devised and implemented for major surgery patients. Pharmacological interventions include the provision of antibiotic prophylaxis and antiseptic agents, whereas non-pharmacological interventions encompass programmatic interventions such as protocols, policies, quality improvement initiatives, training, and education that are given at the institutional level. However, the effect of particularly non-pharmacological interventions on the reduction has not been comprehensively evaluated for over a decade. This systematic review attempts to synthesize a piece of evidence on the effect of non-pharmacological intervention in Sub-Saharan Africa on minimizing SSI and enhancing health outcomes.

METHODS

Databases including MEDLINE, Google Scholar, Cochrane Library, AJOL, Hinari, search platforms, and open-access repositories were accessed. Two investigators conducted a literature selection process, and the quality of selected articles was assessed using a JBI quality evaluation checklist.

RESULTS

A total of 11 studies that met the inclusion criteria were analyzed. Three main intervention categories were identified, which focused on improving adherence to protocol, policy change or induction, and delivery of multimodal strategies. These interventions led to a reduction in SSI rates in varying degrees (15% to 95%). Multimodal interventions are the most widely implemented and comprehensive approaches that integrate multiple evidence-based practices, which have demonstrated a substantial reduction of SSI in different surgical populations. The rates of improvement with these interventions were influenced by intervention type, patient characteristics, surgical urgency, healthcare setting, follow-up time, and criteria for measuring the outcomes that may influence the SSI rates.

CONCLUSION

Interventions focusing on policy, protocol, and multimodal strategies can effectively reduce SSI rates, with the latter being the most effective. Patient and clinical characteristics, along with the healthcare setting, were influential factors affecting the interventions' impact on SSI. This systematic review is registered in PROSPERO, in the number CRD42024524963.

Analysis of clinical pharmacists' interventions in a rehabilitation setting

Background

To elucidate the role of clinical pharmacists in rehabilitation programmes by examining the type, severity, medications involved, and the level of acceptance of pharmacists' interventions.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted at the Qatar Rehabilitation Institute (QRI) in Doha, Qatar. Clinical pharmacists' interventions and their underlying rationales were categorised by the type of intervention using a validated classification system. The severity of these interventions was assessed using the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) Risk Matrix. Linear regression and chi-square analyses were employed to examine the relationships between patient-related and medication-related characteristics and the pharmacist interventions.

Results

A total of 3,807 clinical pharmacists' interventions involving 815 patients were collected and analysed. The majority of patients (n = 501, 61.5%) had three or more interventions. Findings indicated that most interventions were addressing pharmacological strategy (n = 1670, 43.9%) and drug quantity (n = 1166, 30.7%). The most frequently reported intervention subtypes included dose optimisation (n = 749, 19.7%), additional drug therapy (n = 673, 17.7%), and medication discontinuation (n = 476, 12.5%). Cardiovascular agents were involved in 37.1% of the interventions, followed by endocrine medications (17.1%) and centrally acting agents (11.7%). A significant proportion of interventions were deemed to have moderate severity (79.8%). Statistical analysis revealed a positive linear correlation between age and the number of interventions per patient (p < 0.001); with no significant difference in the severity of interventions between adult and elderly patients (p = 0.09).

Conclusion

This study highlights the diverse roles of clinical pharmacists in the rehabilitation field. The unique complexity of rehabilitation patients creates a challenging environment for clinical pharmacists, requiring adherence to fundamental practice principles while customising approaches to address individual patient needs. Further research is needed to assess the impact of these interventions on clinically significant outcomes.

Development of an innovative clinical pharmacy service in a urology surgical unit: a new initiative from Qatar

Purpose

To provide an insight into the role of a clinical pharmacy initiative in a surgical urology unit through evaluating the nature, significance, associated medications, and acceptance rate of pharmacist interventions.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was carried out at the Ambulatory Care Center (ACC), Doha, Qatar. Data related to clinical pharmacist interventions and associated rationale were classified according to the nature of the intervention using an adapted classification system. The assessment of the severity followed the National Patient Safety Agency (NPSA) Risk Matrix. Linear regression, Kruskal-Wallis, and post-hoc analyses were performed to determine the association between patient-related and medication-related characteristics on pharmacist interventions.

Results

A total of 3284 interventions (on 1486 patients) were analysed. Most patients (n = 1105; 74.4%) had 1-2 interventions. Age and gender showed a positive linear correlation with the number of interventions per patient (p < 0.01). Majority of interventions were related to pharmacological strategy (n = 1858; 56.6%) and quantity of drug (n = 821; 25%). Additional drug therapy (n = 748; 22.78%) was the most common subcategory followed by optimum dose/frequency (n = 691; 21.04%) and discontinuation of medications (n = 352, 10.72%). Anti-infectives were the most identified drug category (n = 798, 55.1%). Most interventions (59.4%) were of moderate significance; patients with moderate interventions were found to be older compared to patients with minor interventions (p = 0.032). Prescribers' acceptance rate was high (>90%), with a notable increase of 6.6% from 2021 to 2023.

Conclusion

This study showed that the clinical pharmacy service in the urology surgical field was a fruitful initiative. The clinical pharmacist's role has expanded to include not only therapeutic optimisation while ensuring medication safety across the continuum of perioperative care but also the identification and management of untreated health problems. The dynamic and complexity of the urology patient population challenge clinical pharmacists; however, the practice concepts remain the same as in any other clinical setting.

Interventions and impact of pharmacist-delivered services in perioperative setting on clinically important outcomes: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Background

The perioperative arena is a unique and challenging environment that requires coordination of the complex processes and involvement of the entire care team. Pharmacists' scope of practice has been evolving to be patient-centered and to expand to variety of settings including perioperative settings.

Objectives

To critically appraise, synthesize, and present the available evidence of the characteristics and impact of pharmacist-led interventions on clinically important outcomes in the perioperative settings.

Design

A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Methods

We searched PubMed, Embase, and CINAHL from index inception to September 2023. Included studies compared the effectiveness of pharmacist-led interventions on clinically important outcomes (e.g. length of stay, readmission) compared to usual care in perioperative settings. Two independent reviewers extracted the data using the DEPICT-2 (Descriptive Elements of Pharmacist Intervention Characterization Tool) and undertook quality assessment using the Crowe Critical Appraisal (CCAT). A random-effect model was used to estimate the overall effect [odds ratio (OR) for dichotomous and standard mean difference (SMD) for continuous data] with 95% confidence intervals (CIs).

Results

Twenty-five studies were eligible, 20 (80%) had uncontrolled study design. Most interventions were multicomponent and continuous over the perioperative period. The intervention components included clinical pharmacy services (e.g. medication management/optimization, medication reconciliation, discharge counseling) and education of healthcare professionals. While some studies provided a minor description in regards to the intervention development and processes, only one study reported a theoretical underpinning to intervention development. Pooled analyses showed a significant impact of pharmacist care compared to usual care on length of stay (11 studies; SMD -0.09; 95% CI -0.49 to -0.15) and all-cause readmissions (8 studies; OR 0.60; 95% CI 0.39-0.91). The majority of included studies (n = 21; 84%) were of moderate quality.

Conclusion

Pharmacist-led interventions are effective at improving clinically important outcomes in the perioperative setting; however, most studies were of moderate quality. Studies lacked the utilization of theory to develop interventions; therefore, it is not clear whether theory-derived interventions are more effective than those without a theoretical element. Future research should prioritize the development and evaluation of multifaceted theory-informed pharmacist interventions that target the whole surgical care pathway.

Prediction models of surgical site infection after gastrointestinal surgery: a nationwide prospective cohort study

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to construct and validate a clinical prediction model for surgical site infection (SSI) risk 30 days after gastrointestinal surgery.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This multicentre study involving 57 units conducted a 30-day postoperative follow-up of 17 353 patients who underwent gastrointestinal surgery at the unit from 1 March 2021 to 28 February 2022. The authors collected a series of hospitalisation data, including demographic data, preoperative preparation, intraoperative procedures and postoperative care. The main outcome variable was SSI, defined according to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines. This study used the least absolute shrinkage and selection operator (LASSO) algorithm to screen predictive variables and construct a prediction model. The receiver operating characteristic curve, calibration and clinical decision curves were used to evaluate the prediction performance of the prediction model.

RESULTS

Overall, 17 353 patients were included in this study, and the incidence of SSI was 1.6%. The univariate analysis combined with LASSO analysis showed that 20 variables, namely, chronic liver disease, chronic kidney disease, steroid use, smoking history, C-reactive protein, blood urea nitrogen, creatinine, albumin, blood glucose, bowel preparation, surgical antibiotic prophylaxis, appendix surgery, colon surgery, approach, incision type, colostomy/ileostomy at the start of the surgery, colostomy/ileostomy at the end of the surgery, length of incision, surgical duration and blood loss were identified as predictors of SSI occurrence ( P <0.05). The area under the curve values of the model in the train and test groups were 0.7778 and 0.7868, respectively. The calibration curve and Hosmer-Lemeshow test results demonstrated that the model-predicted and actual risks were in good agreement, and the model forecast accuracy was high.

CONCLUSIONS

The risk assessment system constructed in this study has good differentiation, calibration and clinical benefits and can be used as a reference tool for predicting SSI risk in patients.