Improving medication use through pharmacists' access to patient-specific health care information.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE To review and discuss the importance of pharmacists having access to patient-specific health care information in order to provide pharmaceutical care. DATA SOURCES Articles identified through searches of MEDLINE and International Pharmaceutical Abstracts using the following key words: information, decision making, and pharmacist. STUDY SELECTION English-language articles were evaluated for inclusion. DATA SYNTHESIS Pharmacists have demonstrated their ability to positively affect patient outcomes related to medication use, including reducing patients' risk for medication-related adverse effects. CONCLUSION Pharmacists, with proper access to patient-specific health care information, can reduce patients' risk for medication-related problems and improve the quality of their health care.