Implementation of a QTc-interval monitoring protocol by pharmacists to decrease cardiac risk in at-risk patients in an acute care inpatient psychiatric facility

摘要

IntroductionMany medications commonly prescribed in psychiatric hospitals can cause QTc-interval prolongation, increasing a patient's risk for torsades de pointes and sudden cardiac death. There is little guidance in the literature to determine when an electrocardiogram (ECG) and QTc-interval monitoring should be performed. The primary end point was improvement of the appropriateness of ECGs and QTc-interval monitoring of at-risk psychiatric inpatients at Barnabas Health Behavioral Health Center (BHBH) and Monmouth Medical Center (MMC) following implementation of a standardized monitoring protocol. The secondary end point was the number of pharmacist-specific interventions at site BHBH only.