Pharmaceutical care program for dyslipidemic patients at three primary health care centers: impacts and outcomes

Abstract

A pharmaceutical care program for dyslipidemic patients was designed, implemented, and assessed. The study was conducted during 32 weeks, at three Primary Health Care Centers. One hundred and forty two patients were selected. These patients were randomly assigned to intervention or control groups. Intervention group patients received care twice a month and were surveyed to assess their knowledge about their illness and medications, adherence to drug therapy, and quality of life. Possible drug related problems (DRP) were identified, the most frequent being that medication was not taken according to medical indication. Total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol, and triglycerides were measured every two months, with results showing significant improvements in the intervention group’s total cholesterol, LDL-cholesterol (p < 0.0001) and triglycerides (p = 0.009), knowledge of the illness (p < 0.0001), adherence to pharmacological treatment (p < 0.0001), and quality of life (p < 0.0001). Pharmaceutical care prevents and solves drug-related problems and improves patients’ clinical parameters, adherence to medical treatment and quality of life.