Pharmacist
What does the pharmacist do on the wards?
The pharmacy team includes clinical pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and sometimes pharmacy assistants. The pharmacist's main role is to look at the patients' medication and to make sure that everything that's prescribed is appropriate and safe for the patient in terms of the dose, the way it's given, how often it's given and if there are any side effects.
Why might a patient need to be seen by a pharmacist after being on ICU?
It is not uncommon for some of the patient's normal medicines to be stopped when he or she is admitted to Intensive Care, or for new ones to be started. If this is the case, the pharmacy team will come to speak with the patient, to get a full medication history. The pharmacist will offer advice to the doctors and nurses on whether medicines should be started or stopped.
When should the patient expect to see a pharmacist?
Not everyone who leaves the ICU will need to be seen by the pharmacy team. However, the pharmacy team visit the wards daily, from Monday to Friday and sometimes over the weekends. They will continue to review the patients’ medicines, together with the doctors and nurses to make sure that all medications taken are appropriate and safe as possible.
They will make sure that any medication is tailored to your personal needs. The way the body deals with medications can change when you have been critically ill. It might be for example, some medications what were given into a vein or by drip (intravenously) can now be given by mouth, or that the dose of a particular medication needs to change every day.
The pharmacy team will be involved in patients' discharge planning. A member of the team will speak with the patient before they go home about any new tablets, including what they're for, how and when to take them and any side-effects to look out for. If there are any changes in the dose of some of the medications that were taken before the ICU admission, he/she should explain this too.
The hospital discharge letter will include a list of any medications the patient was on at hospital discharge, and they should normally be given around a week's worth of medication.
What kind of help can patients get after they go home?
Patients should see their GP once they get home to arrange an ongoing supply of medication, as the supply of medication given by the hospital will only last a week or two. The patient may already have a stock of the previous medication at home but will have to go to the GP to get a repeat prescription for anything new. If the patient isn’t physically able to get to the GP, it is possible to ask for a telephone consultation. Friend or family members can also pick it up from the GP surgery.