- Retrospective Study of COVID-19 Impact on Medication Use
Covid-19 Medication Use
Keywords:
COVID-19; drug utilization; pandemic
Abstract
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic shifted the medicine utilization landscape in hospitals globally.The purpose of this study was to assess changes in medication utilization throughout the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. A retrospective, descriptive study on medication use was conducted at a tertiary referral hospital in Malaysia. The study covered two periods: from 1 January 2018, to 31 December 2019 (pre-pandemic phase), and from 1 January 2020 to 31 December 2021 (pandemic phase). The analysis included 266 medicines, and the results indicated that a majority of the medications (n=142, 53.4%) experienced a decline in purchasing trends during the pandemic period (2020-2021). Notably, parenteral medications such as muscle relaxant cisatracurium besylate 2 mg/ml injection (1583.3%), vasopressin 20IU/mL injection (796%), vitamin B and C injection (672.9%,) and oral antipsychotic olanzapine 5mg (534.4%) witnessed an exponential increase in purchases. Conversely, several classes of medicines exhibited a decline in purchasing trends ranging from -45.7% to -73.7%. Notable decreases were observed in peptic ulcer medication, diuretics, and nasal decongestants. This study provides valuable insights into medication utilization trends, offering guidance to healthcare supply chain stakeholders in optimizing logistics operations, ensuring medication availability, and making informed decisions to enhance patient care and resource allocation.
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Al-Qahtani, A. A. (2020, 2020/10/01/). Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2): Emergence, history, basic and clinical aspects. Saudi Journal of Biological Sciences, 27(10), 2531-2538. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sjbs.2020.04.033
Ammar, M. A., Sacha, G. L., Welch, S. C., Bass, S. N., Kane-Gill, S. L., Duggal, A., & Ammar, A. A. (2021, Feb). Sedation, Analgesia, and Paralysis in COVID-19 Patients in the Setting of Drug Shortages. J Intensive Care Med, 36(2), 157-174. https://doi.org/10.1177/0885066620951426
Anand, R. (2021, 26 July 2021). Malaysia sees record 17,045 new Covid-19 cases, as Delta variant spreads. The Straits Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/asia/se-asia/malaysias-17045-new-covid-19-cases-bring-total-past-1m-infections-as-delta-spreads
Babar, Z.-U.-D. (2018). Encyclopedia of Pharmacy Practice and Clinical Pharmacy.
Blecker, S., Jones, S. A., Petrilli, C. M., Admon, A. J., Weerahandi, H., Francois, F., & Horwitz, L. I. (2021). Hospitalizations for Chronic Disease and Acute Conditions in the Time of COVID-19. JAMA Internal Medicine, 181(2), 269-271. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamainternmed.2020.3978
Bohand, X., Jordan, D., & Dubois, F. (2021, Mar 31). Managing the risk of shortages and medication errors with curares during the COVID-19 pandemic: a hospital pharmacy experience. Eur J Hosp Pharm. https://doi.org/10.1136/ejhpharm-2020-002605
Goyal, V., Anand, H., Siddharth, V., & Koushal, V. K. (2016, 06/01). Lead Time in Drug Procurement: A Study of Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital of North India. International Journal of Research Foundation of Hospital and Healthcare Administration, 4, 16-19. https://doi.org/10.5005/jp-journals-10035-1054
Hamidi, A., & Yılmaz, Ş. (2021, 02/10). Antibiotic consumption in the hospital during COVID-19 pandemic, distribution of bacterial agents and antimicrobial resistance: A singlecenter study. Journal of Surgery and Medicine, 5, 124-127. https://doi.org/10.28982/josam.834535
Hashim, J. H., Adman, M. A., Hashim, Z., Mohd Radi, M. F., & Kwan, S. C. (2021, 2021-May-07). COVID-19 Epidemic in Malaysia: Epidemic Progression, Challenges, and Response [Review]. Frontiers in Public Health, 9(247). https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.560592
Kalanj, K., Marshall, R., Karol, K., Tiljak, M. K., & Orešković, S. (2021, 2021-September-09). The Impact of COVID-19 on Hospital Admissions in Croatia [Original Research]. Frontiers in Public Health, 9. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpubh.2021.720948
Kant, S., Pandaw, C. S., & Nath, L. M. (1996, 1996 Jul- Jan). A management technique for effective management of medical store in hospitals. Medical store management technique. Journal (Academy of Hospital Administration (India)), 8-9(2-1), 41-47. http://europepmc.org/abstract/MED/10166961
Kaur, S., Rajagopalan, S., Kaur, N., Shafiq, N., Bhalla, A., Pandhi, P., & Malhotra, S. (2014). Drug utilization study in medical emergency unit of a tertiary care hospital in north India. Emerg Med Int, 2014, 973578. https://doi.org/10.1155/2014/973578
Kendzerska, T., Zhu, D. T., Gershon, A. S., Edwards, J. D., Peixoto, C., Robillard, R., & Kendall, C. E. (2021). The Effects of the Health System Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic on Chronic Disease Management: A Narrative Review. Risk Manag Healthc Policy, 14, 575-584. https://doi.org/10.2147/rmhp.S293471
Machado-Duque, M. E., Gaviria-Mendoza, A., Valladales-Restrepo, L. F., Albanés-Beltrán, J. P., & Machado-Alba, J. E. (2022, Dec). Trends in the Use of Sedative-Hypnotics, Opioids, and Neuromuscular Blockers in Hospitalized Patients During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Observational Retrospective Study. Drugs Real World Outcomes, 9(4), 629-638. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40801-022-00337-z
McEvoy, E., & Ferri, D. (2020, 10/26). The Role of the Joint Procurement Agreement during the COVID-19 Pandemic: Assessing Its Usefulness and Discussing Its Potential to Support a European Health Union. European Journal of Risk Regulation, 11, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1017/err.2020.91
Nourazari, S., Davis, S. R., Granovsky, R., Austin, R., Straff, D. J., Joseph, J. W., & Sanchez, L. D. (2021, 2021/04/01/). Decreased hospital admissions through emergency departments during the COVID-19 pandemic. The American Journal of Emergency Medicine, 42, 203-210. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajem.2020.11.029
Padhan, S., T, P., Chandrakar, R., Galhotra, A., & Borkar, N. B. (2021, Nov). Assessment of the Impact of COVID-19 on Drug Store Management in a Tertiary Care Teaching Hospital of Central India. Cureus, 13(11), e19723. https://doi.org/10.7759/cureus.19723
Pharmaceutical Services Programme, M. o. H. M. (2020). COVID-19 Pandemic in Malaysia: The Journey. https://www.pharmacy.gov.my/v2/sites/default/files/document-upload/covid-19-pandemic-malaysia-journey.pdf
Razak Ahmad, D. P. (2020, 14 April 2020). Turning the tide on Malaysia’s third Covid-19 wave. The Star. https://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2020/10/14/turning-the-tide-on-malaysias-third-covid-19-wave
Santi, L., Golinelli, D., Tampieri, A., Farina, G., Greco, M., Rosa, S., Beleffi, M., Biavati, B., Campinoti, F., Guerrini, S., Ferrari, R., Rucci, P., Fantini, M. P., & Giostra, F. (2021). Non-COVID-19 patients in times of pandemic: Emergency department visits, hospitalizations and cause-specific mortality in Northern Italy. PLOS ONE, 16(3), e0248995. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0248995
World Health Organization. Regional Office for, E., Bergman, U., Grímsson, A., Wahba, A. H. W., & Westerholm, B. (1979). Studies in drug utilization: methods and applications. World Health Organization. Regional Office for Europe. https://apps.who.int/iris/handle/10665/272811
Published
2025-03-27
How to Cite
Palani Velu, T., Islahudin, F., & Chong, W. W. (2025). - Retrospective Study of COVID-19 Impact on Medication Use. Indonesian Journal of Pharmacy. https://doi.org/10.22146/ijp.10071
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Section
Research Article
