Hospital Pharmacy Operations Flashcards

A pharmacist is reviewing a patient with heart failure who is also prescribed NSAIDs for arthritis pain. What is the main concern?

Answer: NSAIDs cause sodium and water retention, worsen renal function, reduce diuretic efficacy, and antagonize ACE inhibitor effects — contraindicated in heart failure

NSAIDs are contraindicated in heart failure: they cause sodium/water retention (worsening edema), reduce renal prostaglandins (reducing GFR and diuretic efficacy), antagonize ACE inhibitors, and increase the risk of acute decompensation and hospitalization. Paracetamol is the preferred analgesic in HF patients.

A pharmacist is assessing a patient with type 2 diabetes and newly diagnosed heart failure. Which diabetes medication is both cardioprotective and reduces hospitalizations for heart failure?

Answer: SGLT2 inhibitor (empagliflozin or dapagliflozin)

SGLT2 inhibitors (empagliflozin - EMPA-REG, dapagliflozin - DAPA-HF) have demonstrated significant reductions in cardiovascular mortality, heart failure hospitalization, and renal disease progression. They are now recommended as first-line add-on therapy in T2DM with HF or high cardiovascular risk. Pioglitazone and saxagliptin worsen heart failure.

A pharmacist receives a prescription for carbamazepine. Which laboratory test must be ordered at baseline and regularly during therapy?

Answer: CBC, LFTs, serum electrolytes (especially sodium — SIADH risk), and drug levels

Carbamazepine requires regular monitoring for: aplastic anemia/agranulocytosis (CBC), hepatotoxicity (LFTs), SIADH/hyponatremia (serum sodium), and drug levels (therapeutic range 4–12 mg/L). Carbamazepine also auto-induces its own metabolism (CYP3A4), meaning levels fall after initial stabilization, requiring dose adjustment.

A patient on HAART (antiretroviral therapy) is prescribed rifampin for TB co-infection. Which antiretroviral regimen interaction is most critical?

Answer: Rifampin induces CYP3A4 — reduces protease inhibitor and NNRTI levels by 75–90%; replace with rifabutin (less potent inducer) or use efavirenz-based regimen

Rifampin is a potent CYP3A4/P-gp inducer that reduces protease inhibitor levels by up to 90% (causing treatment failure and HIV resistance) and significantly reduces NNRTI levels. Rifabutin is the preferred rifamycin with HAART (less potent inducer). Efavirenz-based regimens (with dose increase to 800 mg) can be used with rifampin.

A pharmacist is reviewing IV compatibility before mixing two drugs in the same syringe. Phenytoin is ordered to be mixed with dextrose 5% in water (D5W). What is the problem?

Answer: Phenytoin precipitates in dextrose solutions — must be prepared in normal saline only

Phenytoin (IV formulation) contains propylene glycol and is highly alkaline (pH 10–12). It precipitates immediately in dextrose solutions because the alkaline pH is incompatible with the slightly acidic dextrose. Phenytoin must only be mixed with normal saline (0.9% NaCl) and infused through a dedicated line.

A hospital pharmacy director reviews adverse drug event (ADE) data. Which metric best measures the impact of the clinical pharmacy program on patient safety?

Answer: Rate of preventable ADEs per 1,000 patient-days — tracking pharmacist interventions that prevented harm

The most meaningful patient safety metric for clinical pharmacy is the rate of preventable adverse drug events (ADEs) prevented through pharmacist intervention. This directly measures patient harm averted. Total errors caught, interventions per patient, and cost avoidance from prevented ADEs are also important metrics.