E-DRUG: RFI: Formulary for a tertiary care hospital? (5)
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Greetings E-Drug and Dr Atieno,
I think the most important starting point is the support of management - if
your hospital director and medical director and chief pharmacist are all
convinced about the importance of a formulary, as a tool that will improve
prescribing dispensing and medicine cost management then half your work is
done. From there on there will be positive pressure on your Medicines and
Therapeutics Committee to follow through its work without giving in (too
much) to pharmaceutical sales reps pressure. Then involve absolutely
everyone you can think of into the process even if it means more work at
first. Get each department head to go back to its department with the list
of medicines relevant to its specialty and discuss it with its doctors and
feedback to you and reply them all, do this a few times at first so that as
many people as possible feel that their input is treasured and that they are
at least listened to even if you can't take in all their requests. When the
formulary list (then book) is ready launch it in a grand manner, with an
acknowledgement chapter in it including as many people as you can mention,
then try hard to make it a point to distribute the books for free to
everyone: nurses, doctors, pharmacists, med students (especially med
students, they are the ones who wiill implement it for you with enthusiasm
later). Include training workshops on its usage and keep talking about it -
in your pharmacy bulletins, medical updates, whatever.
I have seen this work in a big teaching hospital in Malaysia
(www.hukm.ukm.my), I was involved in its process from the beginning and was
the editor of its first formulary which is now in its third edition and
doing well. I have also set up the formulary list and book (which is now in
its second edition) for Mercy Ships International, an NGO working in
developing countries www.mercyships.org. WHO has published many materials
notably the WHO Model Formulary and the How to do it notes in the recent
years. Please feel free to correspond with me if you would like further
details :). Blessings for your good work and a formulary really can make a
difference in many many ways so do persevere and people will catch your
vision eventually.
Best regards,
Kae 
Kae Ting Trouilloud
Editor/Pharmacist
Director of Pharmacy
Mercy Ships International
With M/V Anastasis currently docked in Monrovia, Liberia