E-DRUG: Global Survey of Hospital Pharmacy Practice Completed
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Results to be Presented Soon
The Hague, 9 June 2008 - In preparation for the upcoming FIP Global
Conference on the Future of Hospital Pharmacy, the FIP Board of
Pharmaceutical Practice provided support for a special project to
conduct a global survey of hospital pharmacy practice. The survey was
carried out by researchers at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, on
behalf of the FIP Hospital Pharmacy Section.
The survey highlighted numerous threats to the practice of pharmacy in
the hospital setting around the globe. For example, it was noted that
only 35% of countries require that hospitals have a pharmacist present
or accessible 24 hours a day to respond to emergency medication needs.
In addition, only 63% of countries store and track medications in a
manner that facilitates efficient and effective recalls in their
hospitals. Only 80% of countries indicated that most of their hospitals
do not use expired or outdated medications.
A total of 84 countries which is 44% of all countries recognized by the
United Nations, representing 83% of the world's population (nearly 5.4
billion people), responded to the survey. Responses were received from a
wide range of countries, with strong representation from all regions of
the World Health Organization and from all classes of the Human
Development Index.
The complete findings of the survey will be presented in Basel,
Switzerland during the Global Conference on the Future of Hospital
Pharmacy and will form the basis for planning and consensus development
process that will take place during the Conference.
More information about the Global Conference is available at
www.fip.org/globalhosp. For further information about the survey, please
contact the principal investigator, Lee Vermeulen, University of
Wisconsin, email: LC.Vermeulen@hosp.wisc.edu
"S.J. (Satu) Siiskonen"
Netherlands
<s.siiskonen@erasmusmc.nl>