Impact of Clinical Pharmacist-Led Interventions on Drug-Related Problems Among Pediatric Cardiology Patients: First Palestinian Experience

Background: Discovery and resolution of drug-related problems (DRPs) are taken as the cornerstone in the entire pharmaceutical care process to improve patient outcomes. Very limited reports on the analysis of DRPs in pediatric cardiology have been released worldwide. Objective: The aim of this study was to disclose the impact of clinical pharmacist's interventions on DRPs among pediatric cardiology patients in Palestine. Methods: Between January and September 2021, a prospective interventional study involving clinical pharmacist's care was implemented in the cardiology ward of Al-Rantisy Specialized Pediatric Hospital in Gaza, Palestine. Pharmaceutical Care Network Europe model 9.1 was used to identify DRPs, causes of the problem, clinical pharmacist's interventions, cardiologist's acceptance, and outcomes. Results: A total of 309 DRPs were identified in 87 patients, representing a mean of 3.55 problems per patient. The most common DRPs were "Treatment effectiveness" (50.8%) and "Treatment safety" (30.4%), while the main causes of these DRPs were "Errors in dose timing instructions" (9.4%) and "Inappropriate combination of drugs" (13.7%), respectively. Analysis revealed that 96.7% of the interventions suggested by the clinical pharmacist were accepted by cardiologists and that 92.1% of problems were fully resolved with improved patient outcomes. Conclusion: Interventions offered by the clinical pharmacist successfully addressed DRPs and positively impacted treatment outcomes in pediatric cardiology patients. With the high acceptance of pediatric cardiologists to the clinical pharmacist's experience in Palestine, there is a growing need to integrate clinical pharmacists into cardiology teamwork care to optimize drug therapy and patient safety. Keywords: clinical pharmacist, drug-related problems, pediatric cardiology, Palestine