Pharmacist Interventions regarding Cancer Patient-Related Medication Issues at RSUP Dr. Kariadi Semarang

Cancer has been a global health issue. In 2018, cases related to cancer reached 18.1 million and the number of cancer-related deaths was 9.6 million. Pharmacists, play a crucial role in preventing and addressing Drug-Related Problems (DRPs) through pharmaceutical services. This research aims to examine the overview of Drug-Related Problems (DRPs) in inpatient cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy and to define the pharmacist's interventions regarding DRPs in cancer patients at RSUP Dr. Kariadi Semarang. This study employed a retrospective data collection approach. The materials were obtained from pharmacist prescription reviews and the medical records of cancer inpatients undergoing chemotherapy in January 2022. The classification of Drug-Related Problems (DRPs) followed PCNE V9.1 guidelines. A total of 239 DRPs were identified. The main issues were related to treatment effectiveness (44%), treatment safety (43.9%), and others (12.1%). Common causes of DRPs included dosing selection (63.7%), drug selection (28.4%), and treatment duration (0.4%). Pharmacists' interventions were carried out at the prescription writing level in 376 cases (61.4%) and at the drug utilization level in 294 cases (38.6%). The verification of prescriptions by clinical pharmacists before drug preparation is a crucial step to reduce the potential occurrence of DRPs