Enhanced clinical pharmacy practice in the emergency department: what is it, and what does it mean for patient care?
- D Greenwood, D Steinke, M P Tully, S Martin, A Grayson and C Cutts
- The University of Manchester
Aim
This research will aim to first investigate what Enhanced Clinical Pharmacists (ECPharms) do, so that Emergency Department (ED) enhanced clinical pharmacy practice can be described and defined. Second, this research will develop the methodology needed to investigate the impact of this practice on a defined patient outcome.
Method
To describe and define what these pharmacists do, an iPad based data collection tool will be developed for pharmacists to self-report their work prospectively whilst in the ED. The tool will be used to capture work specific to individual patients as well as the wider ED, in a concise and user-responsive way that is quick and simple to use. Eight to twelve participants will be recruited and asked to collect data over a two week period. Data collected will then undergo analysis using SPSS software. Focus groups with ED patients and professionals will be used to explore these groups feelings towards patient outcomes and how they think ECPharms could impact on outcomes.
Results
The methodology developed will feed into a subsequent substantive grant application. Research findings will be widely disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and presentations to audiences within and outside of academia. Findings will increase awareness of ED enhanced clinical pharmacy practice and consequently promote expansion and development of this novel role.
The link to the full final report is available here.
