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Objectives: To evaluate the impact of clinical pharmacist‐led interventions on the switch from intravenous (IV) to oral (PO) antibiotics among inpatients with infectious diseases. Methods: A before‐and‐after study was conducted among inpatients aged 18 or older who were diagnosed with infectious diseases and received IV antibiotics for at least 24 h at the Thong Nhat Hospital during the pre‐intervention (between January 2021 and June 2021) and intervention (between January 2022 and June 2022) periods. Information on patient characteristics, antibiotic usage, length of hospital stay and treatment outcomes was obtained from medical records. The interventions included introducing IV‐to‐PO switch guidelines to physicians and clinical pharmacists' feedback on eligible cases. The impact of the pharmacists' interventions was evaluated by comparing primary outcomes (switch rate and appropriateness of switching) and secondary outcomes (duration of IV therapy, length of hospital stay and treatment outcomes) between the two study periods. Results: We included 99 patients in the pre‐intervention and 80 patients in the intervention period. The proportion of patients who switched from IV‐to‐PO antibiotics increased from 44.4% in the pre‐intervention period to 67.8% in the intervention period (p = 0.008). The overall rate of appropriate conversion increased significantly from 43.8% to 67.5% (p = 0.043). There were no statistically significant differences between the two periods with respect to the median duration of IV therapy (9 days vs. 8 days), length of hospital stay (10 days vs. 9 days) and treatment outcomes. Logistic regression analysis showed that the interventions resulted in a higher switch rate, whereas age was negatively associated with the switching rate. Conclusions: The implementation of clinical pharmacist‐led interventions was effective in promoting IV‐to‐PO antibiotic conversion. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: We investigated the characteristics of prophylactic antimicrobial use in clean and clean‐contaminated surgical procedures and assessed the efficacy of a prophylactic antimicrobial stewardship intervention at Thong Nhat Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Methods: A cross‐sectional study was conducted on 354 patients who underwent either clean or clean‐contaminated surgical procedures at Thong Nhat Hospital. Eligible patients were classified with respect to three periods of intervention from 2017 to 2020. Data collection included surgical procedures, patient characteristics, and prophylactic antimicrobial usage. We determined the efficacy of antimicrobial stewardship intervention based on comparisons among the primary outcome (the appropriateness of prophylactic antimicrobials) and secondary outcomes (postoperative antimicrobial prophylaxis (AP) prolongation, length of postoperative hospital stay, and cost of antimicrobials). Results: The mean age of patients in periods 1, 2, and 3 was 54.5 ± 16.6, 50.2 ± 16.5, and 52.8 ± 17.3 years, respectively, with an overall male/female ratio of 1.1/1. No significant differences were detected in basic patient characteristics during the three periods. Majority of the surgical procedures were clean (56%–59%) and scheduled (85%–86%). Prophylactic antimicrobial stewardship intervention enhanced AP appropriateness (by 12.7%, 12.7%, and 39.0% in periods 1, 2, and 3, respectively, p < 0.001), decreased postoperative prophylactic antimicrobial duration [3.0 (0–6), 1.5 (0–5), and 0.0 (0–1) days, respectively, p < 0.001], and reduced average antimicrobial expenses (p < 0.001). Conclusions: The prophylactic antimicrobial stewardship interventions introduced at Thong Nhat Hospital had several positive impacts on the appropriateness of prophylactic antimicrobial use and treatment costs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: End‐stage renal disease (ESRD) is a chronic disease that can adversely affect the patient's quality of life (QoL) in terms of functional limitation and cognitive impairment. This study aimed to identify the factors associated with QoL in patients with ESRD undergoing dialysis at a national hospital in Vietnam. Methods: A descriptive cross‐sectional study was conducted among outpatients aged ≥18 years who underwent haemodialysis (HD) or peritoneal dialysis (PD) for at least 3 months at Thong Nhat Hospital, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam from May 2020 to July 2021. QoL was measured using the validated Vietnamese version of the EuroQol‐5 Dimensional‐5 Level (EQ‐5D‐5L). The factors associated with the QoL of patients with ESRD undergoing dialysis were identified using multiple linear regression analysis. Results: In total, 131 (73.6%) and 47 (26.4%) patients underwent HD and PD, respectively. Overall, 178 (55.6%) patients were men (median age, 66 [56–79] years). The mean EQ‐5D‐5L score was significantly higher in patients undergoing PD than in those undergoing HD (0.848 ± 0.183 vs. 0.766 ± 0.231; p = 0.030). Older age (β = −0.006; p < 0.001) and peptic ulcer disease (β = −0.083; p = 0.029) were associated with lower QoL scores. PD treatment was associated with higher QoL scores (β = 0.065; p = 0.046). Conclusions: It is necessary to improve the QoL of patients undergoing dialysis, especially of elderly patients and patients with peptic ulcer disease. PD may be a better method for maintenance dialysis, if applicable, in terms of QoL. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]