Nazario M, Feliú J F, Rivera G C
San Juan Department of Veterans, Affairs Medical Center, Puerto Rico 00927.
Hosp Pharm. 1994 Mar;29(3):244-6, 249-50.
The San Juan Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center's adverse drug reactions (ADRs) reporting and monitoring program is described. ADRs for the first 2 years of the program are discussed. These were mainly hypersensitivity (29.3%), drug intoxications (19.9%), cardiovascular (15.9%), hematologic (7.6%), neurologic (4.9%), and gastrointestinal (4.7%) ADRs. Drugs most frequently involved were antibiotics (28.7%), cardiovascular agents (21.2%), anticonvulsants (10.2%), psychotropics (9.4%), and theophylline (5.1%). Preventive interventions include the development of a clinical pharmacist-run anticoagulation clinic, a drug utilization evaluation of phenytoin, development of a dosing algorithm for theophylline, and the possible future initiation of a pharmacokinetic consult service. The success of the ADR program is evidenced by a 750% increase in ADR reports over the 2-year period. This was possible by the establishment of a clear definition of an ADR, the creation of a simple reporting method, and an ongoing educational campaign.
