Profile of Medical Prescriptions and Potential Risks to the Safety of Cancer Patients in the Chemotherapy Sector of Ophir Loyola Hospital. Belém, Pará

Abstract The schedule and therapeutic cycle for the treatment of malignancies involves the simultaneous use of distinct drugs, including antineoplastics and adjuvants, depending on the tumor to be treated, varying according to the treatment protocol. Studies demonstrate the problem of the high potential severity associated with prescriptions errors. This work aimed to know the profile of medical prescriptions in the chemotherapy sector of Ophir Loyola Hospital, aiming to identify potential problems related to the  user safety. This is an exploratory, descriptive, quantitative and qualitative retrospective cross-sectional study, with a temporal cut from January to March 2017, through data collection in prescriptions and prospective participatory observation in the dispensation and administration in the period from April to June 2017. A total of 1,034 prescriptions were analyzed with 2,068 prescribed medications, where the mean error was 7.67 per prescription, of which: 90 (8.70%) did not inform the diluent to be used; 154 (14.89%) did not report the volume of the diluent and did not contain the infusion time; 234 (22.63%) did not inform the therapeutic scheme that would be used by the user; 247 (23.89%) did not indicate the number of the administration cycle; 374 (36.17%) did not indicate the interval between these cycles. No dispensing and administration errors were found. It can be inferred that there are shortcomings in the elaboration of the prescription, being necessary interventions that improve them, aiming to improve the quality of the service provided, as well as, to provide the user safety. keywords: Public Health. Medical Oncology. Pharmacy Service, Hospital. Drug Prescriptions. Patient Safety. Resumo O esquema e o ciclo terapeutico para o tratamento das neoplasias envolvem o uso simultâneo de distintos medicamentos, incluindo antineoplasicos e adjuvantes, dependendo do tumor a ser tratado, variando conforme o protocolo de tratamento. Estudos demonstram o problema da alta gravidade potencial associada a estes erros. Este trabalho teve como objetivo conhecer o perfil de prescricoes medicas no setor de quimioterapia do Hospital Ophir Loyola, visando identificar potenciais problemas relacionados com a seguranca do usuario. Trata-se de um estudo exploratorio, descritivo, retrospectivo para a analise de prescricoes medicas e prospectivo para a observacao participativa do processo de dispensacao e administracao de medicamentos antineoplasicos no Servico de Quimioterapia da Farmacia Hospitalar, realizado entre abril e junho de 2017.  Foram analisadas 1.034 prescricoes com 2.068 medicamentos prescritos, onde a media de erros foi de 7,67 por prescricao, sendo que: 90 (8,70%) nao informavam o diluente a ser utilizado; 154 (14,89%) nao informavam o volume do diluente e nao continham o tempo de infusao; 234 (22,63%) nao informavam o esquema terapeutico que seria utilizado pelo usuario; 247 (23,89%) nao indicavam o numero do ciclo de administracao; 374 (36,17%) nao indicavam o intervalo entre esses ciclos. Nao foram encontrados erros de dispensacao e de administracao. Pode-se inferir que existem falhas na elaboracao da prescricao, sendo necessarias intervencoes que aprimorem as mesmas, visando melhorar a qualidade do servico prestado, bem como, proporcionar a seguranca do usuario. Palavras-chave: Saude Publica. Oncologia. Servico de Farmacia Hospitalar. Drug prescriptions Patient Safety.