The National Medication Management Plan (MMP) is a standardised form developed by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care (ACSQHC) to improve the depth and accuracy of the medication history process1.
Historically, Icon Cancer Care’s Medication History form was intended for patient completion prior to initial presentation. This medication history process required improvement to enhance the quality of information gathered by pharmacists. To date, there is no nationally standardised tool specifically for outpatients in a healthcare setting.
The aim was to implement the MMP nationally across Icon day hospitals and standardise the medication history procedure while measuring the clinical benefit of its use in an outpatient setting.
Implementation involved collaboration between medical, nursing, pharmacy and administrative staff. The national MMP document was adapted to better suit a day hospital outpatient setting. A formal process outlining the intended use of the MMP and a competency assessment tool for pharmacists was developed. In order to support the implementation, an educational workshop was held for pharmacists and a presentation targeting nursing and administration staff was delivered.
The adapted MMP for outpatient use will ensure the standardisation of our medication history process and optimise medication management within the Icon Cancer Care day hospitals. Data is being collected to measure the impact on medication safety, clinical decision making, incidence of medication related incidents, multidisciplinary team collaboration and improved adherence to national standards set out by the ACSQHC.