• Laura E Butkievich, Zachary A Stacy, Michael W Daly, Way Y Huey, and Charles T Taylor.
• St. Luke's Hospital, Chesterfield, MO 65212, USA. butkievichl@health.missouri.edu
• Am J Pharm Educ. 2010 Aug 10;74(6):105.

ObjectivesTo determine if the addition of a student-supported venous thromboembolism risk assessment strategy could improve rates of venous thromboembolism prophylaxis at a community teaching hospital.MethodsAfter receiving education and training on venous thromboembolism risk assessment, students assessed patients and recommended therapy in a 493-bed community teaching hospital over 5 weeks. Both the quantity and quality of venous thromboembolism prophylaxis were measured and compared to a baseline rate.ResultsOne hundred three recommendations were made to physicians with a 41% acceptance rate. Compared to previous rates, the percentages of patients receiving "any," "suitable," and "optimal" venous thromboembolism prophylaxis increased from 70.5% to 82.7% (p = 0.0005), 64.4% to 75.9% (p = 0.0022), and 56.3% to 68.5% (p = 0.0022), respectively.ConclusionsA student-supported venous thromboembolism risk assessment strategy resulted in an increase in venous thromboembolism prophylaxis rates and could be used as a model for other institutions to integrate students into population-based care.

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