American journal of health-system pharmacy : AJHP : official journal of the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists
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Am J Health Syst Pharm · Sep 2008
ReviewLapatinib: a dual tyrosine kinase inhibitor for metastatic breast cancer.
The pharmacology, pharmacokinetics, clinical efficacy, adverse effects, drug and food interactions, dosage and administration, and role in therapy of lapatinib in metastatic breast cancer are reviewed. ⋯ Lapatinib has demonstrated efficacy in combination with capecitabine in patients with previously treated HER2-positive metastatic breast cancer. In patients with metastatic disease refractory to trastuzumab-, anthracycline-, and taxane-containing regimens, the addition of lapatinib to capecitabine may extend the time to disease progression and progression-free survival.
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Am J Health Syst Pharm · Sep 2008
Implementing after-hours pharmacy coverage for critical access hospitals in northeast Minnesota.
A project that used health information technology (IT) to provide after-hours pharmacy coverage to critical access hospitals in northeast Minnesota is described. ⋯ Using Internet-based health IT, pharmacists from a metropolitan (hub) hospital with round-the-clock pharmacist coverage participated in the care of patients at a number of small, rural hospitals and helped ensure that those patients received safe and effective medication therapy. The coverage provided by pharmacists at the hub hospital improved nursing satisfaction with the overall quality of pharmacy services provided by both the hub hospital and the local onsite pharmacists.
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Am J Health Syst Pharm · Sep 2008
Relationships between colleges of pharmacy and academic medical centers.
The nature of the relationships between academic medical centers and colleges of pharmacy, particularly in respect to experiential education, was studied. ⋯ While relationships between academic medical centers and colleges of pharmacy were generally positive, the growing need for early experiential education sites, increased class sizes, and shortage of qualified preceptors necessitate a reexamination of the relationships to ensure that they continue to benefit both parties.
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Am J Health Syst Pharm · Sep 2008
Use and prescribing patterns for erythropoiesis-stimulating agents in inpatient and outpatient hospital settings.
Erythropoiesis-stimulating agent (ESA) use in the outpatient and inpatient settings through pharmacist-conducted, hospital-based chart audits is examined and discussed. ⋯ ESA use differed between outpatient and inpatient settings in indication, frequency of administration, and specialty of the prescriber.
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The use of factor VIIa (recombinant) for the treatment of acute traumatic hemorrhage is reviewed. ⋯ Factor VIIa (recombinant) reduces RBC transfusion requirements in patients with blunt traumatic hemorrhage, and its effect on mortality is currently being investigated. Adjunctive use of factor VIIa (recombinant) should be considered only after other treatment modalities have been optimized.