3.14 Drug Use Evaluation (DUE)

General Policy Description

PharmaNet captures and adjudicates all prescriptions dispensed in all community pharmacies and hospital outpatient pharmacies in B.C. Once a transaction is completed, PharmaNet returns a complete patient medication history, drug use evaluation (DUE) and adjudication results.

Policy Details

DUE checks

The last 14 months, or the last 15 dispenses within the past 14 months, of all prescriptions dispensed (i.e., a client's medication history) in community pharmacies and hospital outpatient pharmacies in B.C. is available in PharmaNet.

PharmaNet's DUE function provides pharmacists with information for assessing patient therapy.

PharmaNet performs four types of DUE checks, using drug information and clinical modules from First Databank (FDB).

The prescription being dispensed is compared to active prescriptions in the medication history to assess:

• Drug-to-drug interactions
• Drug-to-prior adverse reactions
• Duplicate therapy/ingredients
• Dose too high/too low

DUE and opioid agonist treatment

Opioid agonist treatment (OAT) is frequently not included in DUE checks for OATs dispensed under PINs, as including it causes an excessive number of Duplicate Ingredient/Duplicate Therapy messages.

OATs dispensed under DINs (e.g. buprenorphine-naloxone) are included in DUE checks.

Pharmacists dispensing prescriptions to patients on OAT should be aware of potential drug interactions for OAT drugs, and be prepared to recommend appropriate monitoring and management strategies to physicians and patients.

For information on potential drug interactions, refer to CPBC's Professional Practice Policy (PPP) 66 Guide.