ABSTRACT
Objective To learn and evaluate the present prescriptions from outpatient departments of 21 public hospitals in Songjiang district,and to promote rational drug use.Methods A total of 75,600 outpatient prescriptions from 21 public hospitals in Songjing district were collected monthly from January 2008 to October 2010 and analyzed statistically using indexes for prescription evaluation.Results of the 75,600 prescriptions,the types of drugs in each prescription averaged 2.35,the ratio of antibiotics use and injection agents use were 35.77％ and 17.40％,respectively.The percentage of essential drugs without added profit accounted for 41.91％ of the total drug use,and the average drug cost per prescription was RMB 85.99.Comparison of indexes for prescription evaluation showed that the ratio of antibiotics use and injection agents use as well as the average cost per prescription in secondary hospitals were significantly higher that those in community health centers (P＜0.01),while the percentage of essential drugs without added profit and the average number of drugs in each prescription were statistically smaller than those in community health centers (P＜0.01).Conclusion Drug use in outpatient departments of 21 public hospitals was rational in general,especially noteworthy is the significant improvement made at community health centers in recent three years.