Person-centred care for patients who need medication deliveries

A message from Claire Nevinson, Pharmacy Superintendent:

This month sees the launch of updated standard operating procedures (SOPs) to cover the processes required for the safe delivery of dispensed items. These SOPs can be accessed via MyHub. Patients who use our delivery service may find it difficult to obtain their medicines through other means and some may be less able to manage their medicines independently than those who can visit our pharmacies in person.

The ability to ‘see the patient behind the prescription’ is one of the most critical skills for pharmacy team members. This is especially relevant for those who rely upon our delivery service because, unlike our ‘walk-in’ patients, they may not be seen – or even spoken to – on a regular basis. This means that we have fewer opportunities to identify vital clues about the patient’s health status and wellbeing that often flow from face-to-face conversations in the pharmacy. Please take this opportunity to remind your pharmacy team members about the risks that are inherent in medication deliveries to such potentially vulnerable individuals.

One of the most fundamental changes that we have made with this suite of SOPs is evolving our previous Medicines Delivery Service Agreement (MDSA) into a new Record of Delivery Service Arrangements (RDSA). We’ve learned from experience that individuals who requested a delivery service often had practical difficulties with completing the previous ‘agreement’. By revising our approach to documenting all the patient-specific details needed to facilitate the safe and effective delivery of dispensed items, we can capture the relevant data without imposing the logistical challenges of ensuring the signing of hard-copy agreements (upon our vulnerable patients and our team members). Having overcome these potential logistical challenges, it’s more important than ever that RDSAs are completed with care and diligence in respect of all patients who require the regular delivery of their dispensed items.

This month’s case study is based upon a real-life incident that relates to the delivery of dispensed items. In this case study, the locum pharmacist exercised professional diligence in identifying potential patient safety risk. However, he was not suitably appraised of all the processes that we have in place to protect patient safety. Please ensure that you take the time to share and discuss this case study with your team members. Remember to include any locum or part-time members of your team in the conversation. The way in which you work collaboratively to identify potential risks for delivery service patients could be a very valuable topic for focus at your next monthly Patient Safety Review.