Evidence map›Paper›PMID 36816228›Full record

ArticleHeliyon2023

Telepharmacy services to support patients with epilepsy in Thailand: A descriptive study.

Sunee Lertsinudom, Somsak Tiamkao, Sineenard Mungmanitmongkol, Piyameth Dilokthornsakul

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Heliyon, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed
–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

5 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. The Tell on Telehealth.Epilepsy currents
    Review
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

4 authors.

Sunee LertsinudomDivision of Clinical Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmaceutical Science, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand.
Somsak TiamkaoDepartment of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand.
Sineenard MungmanitmongkolDivision of Nursing, Srinagarind Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand.
Piyameth DilokthornsakulDepartment of Pharmaceutical Care, Faculty of Pharmacy, Center for Medical and Health Technology Assessment (CM-HTA), Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Background: Telepharmacy shows an effective option to provide pharmacy services in several settings. It could improve patients' outcomes and save costs. However, the impact of a telepharmacy services in low resource settings remains limited. Objectives: This study assessed the feasibility and effect of telepharmacy services on patient-reported clinical and economic outcomes among patients with epilepsy in Thailand. Methods: A prospective descriptive study was conducted at a university hospital. Patients with epilepsy visiting the clinic from February 2021-December 2021 were included. Telepharmacy services were provided by hospital pharmacists through an application platform. Patients met a pharmacist synchronously using a video conference feature embedded in our developed website. Patients were interviewed for improved clinical symptoms, drug-related problems (DRPs), and health and social behaviors. Travel costs, food and accommodation costs and productivity costs due to hospital visits were also evaluated. Results: A total of 80 patients were included. Of those, 39 patients (48.75%) were men, averaging 35.44 ± 15.09 years old. A total of 22 patients (27.50%) reported better clinical symptoms after the telepharmacy service. Sixty-four DRPs (69.56%) were observed, along with 28 health and social behavior problems (30.44%). The most common DRPs were adverse drug reactions (20/64; 69.56%), followed by patients' non-adherence (20/64; 31.25%). Sixty-six problems (68.04%) were corrected during the telepharmacy service. From the patient's perspective, the average direct nonmedical cost per visit was 1257 ± 857 THB/visit. Travel costs were the major cost driver, accounting for 67.7% of the total cost. Cost savings averaged 6511 ± 4996 THB/year or 54.75% of usual care. Conclusion: Telepharmacy services are likely to improve patient outcomes, detect DRPs, and effectively provide cost-savings. However, further studies hosting a larger number of participants are warranted to assess the impacts of telepharmacy services.

Indexed as

CostCost-savingDrug-related problemsEpilepsyTelepharmacy

Identifiers

PMID36816228
PMCPMC9932735

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.