Health plans can substantially boost their use of generics, study concludes
March 2nd 2002Optimal management can raise health plans' generic utilization rates from the current average of 34.5% to 51%. So concludes a new study from Stanley Wallack, PhD, and other researchers from Brandeis University.
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Evaluating CPOE systems: Key comparative criteria you'll need to consider
March 1st 2002If your organization hasn't yet selected a computerized provider order entry system (CPOE), it will likely benefit from the checklist of features and functionality criteria presented by Richard Diefes, MS.
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Expanded role for the P & T Committee: Gaining patient consent for off-label drug use
March 1st 2002What's your institution's policy for handling the following situation: A physician wishes to prescribe an FDA-approved drug for an off-label indication for which there is little literature support.
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Automatic IV to PO conversion process provides greatest gains for hospital, patient
March 1st 2002Hartford Hospital, Hartford, CT-Although the economic advantages of IV to oral (PO) antibiotic conversion programs have been documented in numerous studies, most of these programs require physician contact to encourage the switch.
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Assessing the impact of outcomes projects: Take your lead from the AHRQ approach (PDF)
March 1st 2002To retain resources or to justify allocation of additional resources, it's essential to demonstrate the value that outcomes projects bring to organizations. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality's project review process serves as a useful model for how to do so. This month's column explores the AHRQ process for following up and communicating the results of outcomes projects conducted at various practice settings.
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Medications currently available to treat osteoporosis slow the rate of bone loss primarily by reducing bone resorption. The purported advantage of the anabolic agent teriparatide is that it actually promotes new bone growth. Clinical trials have shown the drug to be effective for vertebral fracture prevention in postmenopausal women at high risk. Additional evidence is accumulating to support teriparatide's use in other populations (including men) with osteoporosis. This injectable is likely to receive FDA approval in the second half of this year.
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Review and assessment of pharmacologic management strategies for reflux esophagitis (PDF)
March 1st 2002Pharmacologic therapy is the second cornerstone of the medical management of reflux esophagitis. Because the merits of various drug classes for reflux esophagitis have been widely discussed, the focus of this article is on differing strategies for using these classes. The management strategies - and the rationale and evidence for promoting or rejecting them - are discussed for step-up therapy, empiric therapy, ste-down therapy, on-demand proton pump inhibitor use, combination therapies, and other considerations.
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Success of a P & T policy for use of a second ACE inhibitor before switching to an ARB (PDF)
February 1st 2002VA Medical Center, Miami-ACE inhibitor therapy is recognized as the gold standard treatment for congestive heart failure (CHF) as well as diabetic nephropathy due to its effect on the morbidity and mortality associated with these conditions.
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