Health economic evaluation of a clinical pharmacist's intervention on the appropriate use of devices and cost savings: A pilot study

International audienceBackground: Good management of disposable and reusable supplies may improve surgical efficiency in the operating room (OR) and also corresponds to the best eco-responsible approach. The purpose of this study was to assess the impact of a clinical pharmacist's intervention in the OR on the non-compliant use of medical devices. We also assessed the economic impact of the pharmaceutical intervention.Materials and methods: We conducted a monocentric prospective study in the OR of a University hospital over one year. Three surgical specialties: urologic, digestive and gynecologic were audited after a preparatory phase to optimize usage of medical devices used for surgeries. The supply costs concerning the three specialties were compared before and after the pharmacist intervention.Results: One hundred and fifty surgical procedures were audited in digestive (33.3%, n = 50), gynecologic (32%, n = 48) and urologic (34.7%, n = 52) surgeries. With the pharmacist in OR, 51 procedures (34% CI95%[26.4%; 41.6%]) with a non-compliance concerning at least one medical device were found compared to the 50% rate without the pharmacist reported previously (P < .0001). Eighteen percent of surgical procedures had at least one circulator retrieval for the reason "incomplete case cart despite device listed on the case cart list" versus 29.1% before pharmacist intervention (P = .0028). A €33 014 saving associated with the presence of the pharmacist in OR was observed.Conclusions: This prospective interventional study showed that the intervention of a pharmacist specialized in the medical device field could significantly reduce non-compliances in medical device use and reduce costs in OR