Program to manage new and expensive drugs in pediatrics: Profile of a new drug policy and a 12-month descriptive study

Abstract

Background: With growing financial pressure and the range of new and expensive drugs, hospital administrators, clinicians, and pharmacy directors are facing tough decisions on how to manage drug budgets. At a Canadian mother-child hospital, a policy for new and expensive drugs was developed, with the goal of managing their use and costs. Objectives:To describe the development and implementation of a policy for new and expensive drugs in a mother-child teaching hospital and to describe the profile of requests for these therapies over a 12-month period. Methods: A brainstorming session was conducted with members of the pharmacy and therapeutics committee to define the criteria for new and expensive drugs at the study hospital and a new process to evaluate requests for these drugs. Over the 12-month period following implementation of the policy, all requests for new and expensive drugs were evaluated through collection and analysis of relevant data. Results: The new drug policy was launched on October 1, 2014. Over the following 12-month period, a total of 58 requests for new and expensive drugs were discussed, but only 47 request forms were completed and signed by a physician and a clinical pharmacist. Conclusions: New and expensive drugs represent a challenge for clinicians and hospital stakeholders. This study illustrates the implementation of a new policy for these drugs in a mother-child teaching hospital over a 12-month period.