Defining Medicines Management

The medicine industry has for long been one of the most trusted entities. Medicine is one of the things we simply can’t do without. Try thinking about all the reasons that have led you to visit a doctor, a physician, or a pharmacist. Quite a lot, right? But, as much as medical institutions have made life easy and enjoyable, they are not error-proof.

What is Medicine Management?

Medicines management is the process that ensures that the probability of being prescribed the wrong medicine or an over-dose of the right medicine is greatly reduced. Medicines management lends the necessary support to healthcare institutions to ensure that they provide quality and cost-effective prescriptions to their patients.

Recently, there have been incidents where in patients have developed complications due to wrong prescriptions. This could be due to incompetent medical practitioners, but the main reason is the absence of a medicines management system. For instance, if one is allergic to a certain antibiotic, the doctor or pharmacist issuing the drug has no way of knowing that unless he/she has test results or records at hand showing the medical history of the patient.

Medicines management is a very broad subject and the practice should be adhered to when prescribing, using, and disposing of medicines. About 30-40% of the total costs of running a hospital is made up of medical expenses. Study has also shown that about four in every five people who visit hospitals will receive drug prescriptions.

The statistics reveal that there is a significant amount of medicine being handled by people every day. Due to this, it is ok to say that the benefits of practicing medicines management cannot be emphasised any more than has already been done. Some of the benefits include:

Medicines management enhances the overall health of an individual and the entire human population at large.

Good medicines management practices eliminate any inefficiencies experienced in medicinal resources.

It enhances the ability of medical practitioners to make sound judgments when prescribing drugs to patients.

Enhances patient satisfaction and minimises cases of patients developing complications due to their bodies reacting badly to prescribed drugs.

Eliminates cases of drug overdose among patients.

Helps uphold the good reputation of doctors and the entire medical profession.

A study done in the UK has revealed that with an efficient medicines management system in place, a stunning $100 million can be saved by prescribing patients with the right medication. A significant $40 million more could go into improving the healthcare system if prescription errors are eliminated or minimised.

Two items of interest generally come up while discussing medicines management:

Prescription

Drug or medicine prescriptions are very essential to achieving an efficient medicines management system. After conducting a thorough physical examination, doctors will proceed to prescribe some drugs on a small piece of paper. The pharmacist will then follow the doctor’s instructions and provide the appropriate medication.

If this simple procedure is not followed, then medicines management will have been violated. The prescribing physician must also consider the clinical effectiveness, cost-effectiveness, and safety of the drugs being prescribed.

A formulary is a critical document that contains a list of all the drugs that have been certified to be clinically safe and effective in treating different illnesses appropriately. All drugs that are produced by manufacturers and medical research institutes are scrutinised and verified before making it to the list.

Formularies

The formulary is, therefore, some sort of guideline for doctors and pharmacists designed to ensure error-free drug prescriptions.

In conclusion, a number of independent entities have come up to offer medicines management. One of the best institutions in Australia is Fresh Therapeutic Compounding Pharmacy. They have proven to provide efficient medicines management services. More details about their operations can be found on their website, freshtherapeutics.com.au

Compounding Pharmacy - Sydney Compounding Chemist | Fresh Therapeutics Compounding Pharmacy Address: 3102 Westpoint Blacktown 17 Patrick Street, Blacktown, Sydney, NSW 2148 Tel: 02 9621 2168 Website: http://www.freshtherapeutics.com.au/professional-services/medicines-management/