EVALUATING THE EFFICIENCY OF SPENDING ON ANTIMICROBIAL THERAPY IN THE PULMONOLOGY DEPARTMENT OF A MULTIDISCIPLINARY HOSPITAL IN A PANDEMIC SETTING

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Antimicrobial resistance is recognized as one of the top 10 threats to public health.Due to recent circumstanceswith the 2019 Covid pandemic worldwide, the urgency of monitoring antibiotic consumption and rational use of medications has increased. According to WHO recommendations, countries should aim to increase the proportion of Access group antibiotics consumption to 60% and higher in AWaRe classification system (Access,Watch and Reserve). The ABC/VEN analysis (80%, 15%, 5% of spending) is the simplest and most relevant method for evaluating the effectiveness of antibiotic therapy expenditures. Objectives: Evaluating the cost-effectiveness of antibiotic therapy in the Department of Pulmonology. Methods: ABC/VEN analysis was performed with data on antibiotic costs in the pulmonology department (30 beds) of a multidisciplinary regional hospital (844 beds in total) with 1 full-time clinical pharmacologist for no clinical pharmacy or pharmacology service. To analyze antibiotic consumption patterns according to the AWaRe 2021 classification, we used data on the number of antibiotics procured. Results: The results of the antibiotics spending analysis from 2019-2021 showed that all antibiotics from the most costly group A (80% of total spending) are in the Watch group (J01DH Carbapenems - Ertapenem, Doripenem, Meropenem;J01MA Fluoroquinolones - Levofloxacin;J01DD Third-generation-cephalosporins - Ceftazidime, Ceftriaxone and J01DE Fourth-generation-cephalosporins Cefepime). Meanwhile, there has been an increase in the share of spending on the most consumed group of antibiotics, J01DH Carbapenems, from 42.9% in 2019 to 62.8% by 2021. On the contrary, there is downward trend in spending on the third-generation-cephalosporins which was 35.6% in 2019 and only 6.7% by 2021. Assessment of antibiotic prescription patterns in the pulmonology department based on classification AWaRe 2021 and WHO Model List of Essential Medicines (EML) 2021 (22nd edition) revealed a negative trend in the use of the most costly group (A) of antibiotics with a low level of evidence of efficiency or safety in pulmonology Doripenem, Ertapenem, Levofloxacin, Cefepime. However, there is a positive result in the work of the clinical pharmacology service - the drugs mentioned above were moved into group B (medium-cost) by 2021, except for Cefepim, which was not purchased at all. Conclusion: Despite the positive trend in antibiotic consumption patterns (transfer of antibiotics with efficiency proof from gr A to gr B), current antibiotic therapy in the pulmonology department needs comprehensive optimization of approach to rational antibiotic use, strengthening pharmaceutical care by implementing a clinical pharmacy service that will conduct regular systematic evaluation and contribute to the pharmacoeconomic expediency of antibiotic therapy. Suchmeasures lead to an improvement of the quality of medical care for the population and reduce the cost of this nosology, which proves that there is a need for a comprehensive detailed analysis.