Structural implementation of pharmaceutical services in nursing homes: pilot study

OBJECTIVE: To describe the structural implementation of a pharmaceutical services model to homes for the aged. METHODS: The study delineates the structural implementation of a pharmaceutical service model in a home for the aged in the city of Aracaju, Sergipe, Brazil, which was conducted from January 2010 to December 2012. A researcher-pharmacist and an auditor-pharmacist, based on the adaptation of the Anvisa Resolution and recommendations on the international literature, evaluated structure quality indicators. In the end of the study, a comparison was conducted between the indicators before and after implementation. RESULTS: According to the instrument of such organ, after pharmaceutical interventions, there were modifications in seven of the 13 quality indicators in the homes for the aged. The second instrument showed changes in two of the ten quality indicators in such places. However, in the third, there was a modification in six of 11 quality indicators after pharmaceutical interventions. Although the assessments were focused on the structural characteristics of the medication system, some of the modified indicators were associated with activities that characterize "processes" such as storage and inventory control. The main intervention was the implementation of a medication dispensary in homes for the aged, which allowed the proper storage of drugs and allowed the disclosure of information sources. CONCLUSION: The implementation of pharmaceutical services in homes for the aged enabled the alteration of structural characteristics from the medication system in the institution.</p