An Observational Study on the in Patient Prescription, a Quality Assessment Tool in a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital of Southern India

Background: Prescription auditing is one of the important tools to avoid misuse of drugs and improving the rational use of drugs. The prescription audit is also a part of the medical audit which seeks to monitor, evaluate and if necessary, suggest modifications in the prescribing practices of medical practitioners. Our objective was to study the prescription as a quality assessment tool for In-Patients? prescription in a tertiary care teaching Hospital in southern India. The most important part of healthcare system is to deliver the right medicine to the right patient at right time in right dose by right route. Aims & Objective: To study the inpatient prescription for completeness of prescription format and legibility. Methods: An Observational Cross-sectional study was carried out during the period of 2 months and Total 310 prescriptions of In-patients were collected, scrutinized and statistically analyzed. The parameters which were used to analyze in the process of prescription as a quality assessment tool are Patient demographics, Clinical diagnosis, Department, Prescribing standards, Doctors name and signature. Results: The prescriptions were found to be less than 50% acquiescent to that of the WHO prescribing standards in almost all of the departments. Majority of practitioners are not following the guidelines while writing the prescriptions and usage of drugs. Conclusions: The members of the hospital and Quality committee need to focus on findings of it, which help them during accreditation by regulatory authority.