Establishing a Quality Improvement Working Group to Improve Pharmacist Communication at a Tertiary Hospital after Implementation of a Clinical Information System.
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: Background: Quality improvement frameworks have been employed in health care settings to improve delivery of services. These principles were applied to communications involving the pharmacy department at the study institution. Objectives: To reduce the time required to resolve medication order issues requiring clarification and to capture pharmacist feedback regarding implemented changes. Methods: A quality improvement group focused on pharmacy communication was established. Alberta-based quality improvement methodology was used to identify causes of pharmacy communication issues and to implement solutions. Workload measurement data were used to determine the time to resolution for orders requiring clarification. Pharmacists were surveyed for feedback before and after implementation of solutions. Results: Process mapping identified 2 areas with significant waste of time or resources. The first area involved identifying information sources available to dispensary pharmacists for independent problem-solving, and the second involved identifying the correct clinical pharmacist to contact for assistance. Four action plans were developed: updating and clarifying the principles of medication order verification, streamlining resources, clarifying the roles of dispensary and clinical pharmacists, and updating the materials required to identify the appropriate clinical pharmacist. After implementation of these solutions, the time to resolve medication order issues was reduced by 81%. Survey responses indicated overall satisfaction with the changes, except for the standardized method for sign-in of the patient care team. Conclusions: Establishing a quality improvement group and using structured methodology facilitated improvement in the efficiency of medication order clarification through updated documents, clarification of roles, and reduction of waste.
Source: PubMed
DOI: 10.4212/cjhp.3826
Institution: Alberta Health Services
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7225055746