The Development of a Drug Sharing Inventory Network And Guidelines for the Management of a Drug Referral System in Chiang Mai Province

Abstract

This study is a participatory-action research. The objectives of this study were to: develop a drug sharing inventory network, guidelines for the management of a drug referral system, create a provincial list of medicine in a referral system, and evaluate guidelines for the management of a drug referral system in Chiang Mai Province.This study was conducted at an inpatient dispensary service and medical supply management unit located at Nakornping Hospital from October 1st, 2016 through September 30th, 2017. A total of 15 eligible team members who involved in this referral system and medical supply management unit were recruited. The researchers collected data and evaluated the efficiency of patient referral systems to analyze, plan, and create guidelines for the management of a drug referral system, as well as create a provincial list of medicine in a referral system. The key performance indicators are the length of stay and cost of hospitalization at Nakornping Hospital. The comparison of before and after the development of the guidelines used descriptive statistics, e.g., percentage, mean, standard deviation and paired sample T-test, and a defined 95% confidence interval.

The result of this study revealed that after the development of a drug sharing inventory network between Nakornping Hospital and other network hospitals, there were 13 items in the list, with a total purchase value of THB 11,016,193.48. Moreover, the results of the development guidelines for the management of a drug referral system were; 308 patients received their referral drug at a nearby hospital, the average length of stay has been reduced with a statistical significance (29.08±9.21 VS 21.92±10.55 days, p-value = 0.001), and the costs of hospitalization at Nakornping Hospital have decreased with statistical significance (1,422,419.59 VS 1,032,651.04 THB, p-value = 0.0375).

In conclusion, a drug sharing inventory network and guidelines for the management of a drug referral system can reduce both the length of stay and cost of hospitalization. In addition, patients and caregivers are able to economize the cost of transportation to a central hospital and have timely access to essential health services nearby with the same standards.