Drug Distribution System
This system involved pharmacist to review individual patient’s prescription by the prescriber prior to supplying medication to the ward. When the doctor initiate a prescription for patient, this prescription will be brought by a nurse for collection at the inpatient pharmacy or satellite pharmacy. The pharmacist would review the prescription and prepare the required medication over a duration of 3 to 5days. For example, Paracetamol tablet 500mg TDS was prescribed, patient requires 3tab each day. Therefore, by using unit of use on 5 days basis, 15 tablets will be supplied to this patient on Monday. On Friday when the drugs stock is low, the nurses will re-request to the pharmacy department for medications top-up. In unit of use system, nurses would collect the prescribed medicine and stored at nursing prior to administering the medicine to respective patient. Unit of use often results in increased workload to do medication reconciliation and wastage if the earlier prescribed drugs is not finished due to change of prescriptions or not return to the pharmacy. In a local general hospital, this system is only applied to paediatric ward and maternal ward.