Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34842545›Full record

ArticleJMIR human factors2021

Including the Reason for Use on Prescriptions Sent to Pharmacists: Scoping Review.

Kathryn Mercer, Caitlin Carter, Catherine Burns, Ryan Tennant, Lisa Guirguis, Kelly Grindrod

Abstract readScoping Review
In one paragraph

Article in JMIR human factors, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

6 authors.

Kathryn MercerSystems Design Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6958-3396
Caitlin CarterLibrary, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4391-7305
Catherine BurnsSystems Design Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6182-958X
Ryan TennantSystems Design Engineering, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0932-9510
Lisa GuirguisFaculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7773-4403
Kelly GrindrodSchool of Pharmacy, University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1135-0391

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundIn North America, although pharmacists are obligated to ensure prescribed medications are appropriate, information about a patient's reason for use is not a required component of a legal prescription. The benefits of prescribers including the reason for use on prescriptions is evident in the current literature. However, it is not standard practice to share this information with pharmacists.

objectiveOur aim was to characterize the research on how including the reason for use on a prescription impacts pharmacists.

methodsWe performed an interdisciplinary scoping review, searching literature in the fields of health care, informatics, and engineering. The following databases were searched between December 2018 and January 2019: PubMed, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), Association for Computing Machinery (ACM), International Pharmaceutical Abstracts (IPA), and EMBASE.

resultsA total of 3912 potentially relevant articles were identified, with 9 papers meeting the inclusion criteria. The studies used different terminology (eg, indication, reason for use) and a wide variety of study methodologies, including prospective and retrospective observational studies, randomized controlled trials, and qualitative interviews and focus groups. The results suggest that including the reason for use on a prescription can help the pharmacist catch more errors, reduce the need to contact prescribers, support patient counseling, impact communication, and improve patient safety. Reasons that may prevent prescribers from adding the reason for use information are concerns about workflow and patient privacy.

conclusionsMore research is needed to understand how the reason for use information should be provided to pharmacists. In the limited literature to date, there is a consensus that the addition of this information to prescriptions benefits patient safety and enables pharmacists to be more effective. Future research should use an implementation science or theory-based approach to improve prescriber buy-in and, consequently, adoption.

Indexed as

human factorsmultidisciplinarypatient engagementpatient safety

Identifiers

PMID34842545
PMCPMC8663503

What OpenQuestion holds

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LicenceCC BY
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Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.