New IV paracetamol measure in OpenPrescribing Hospitals
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We’ve launched a new intravenous (IV) paracetamol measure to support cost savings and carbon emissions reduction in hospitals. The new measure is already live on the site - have a look here.
Why build this measure?
Most people will be familiar with paracetamol tablets, which are cheaply and readily available to buy from shops and pharmacies. Paracetamol is also available, by prescription only, as an IV infusion given directly into a vein. This often comes as a ready to use solution in a plastic bottle.
IV paracetamol is very useful for a small subset of patients where paracetamol tablets are not suitable, for example where a patient cannot swallow. However, the complexity of manufacturing IV medicines, which requires sterile production, precise formulation, and specialised packaging, means that IV paracetamol is significantly more expensive and has a higher carbon footprint.
Unnecessary use of IV paracetamol can waste NHS money and cause avoidable carbon emissions.
Supporting guidance
NICE guidance for perioperative care in adults identifies no clear clinical benefit of IV paracetamol over oral formulations in patients who are able to take medicines orally, and advises that IV paracetamol should not be used unless oral administration is not possible. NHS Scotland guidance, based on current evidence, supports switching suitable patients from IV to oral paracetamol as a safe and effective intervention. Together, this guidance provides a clear clinical basis for reviewing current practice and reducing unnecessary IV paracetamol use.
New measure
To support organisations in identifying and reducing unnecessary use of IV paracetamol, we have launched a new measure on OpenPrescribing Hospitals. The measure highlights use of IV paracetamol (comparing against use of all oral and IV paracetamol) and allows organisations to compare activity over time and against peers.
Get in touch
As a small team of clinicians, academics, and software engineers, we are able to build and launch measures quickly by working in an agile manner, openly describing our methods and code. If you have any comments on this measure or suggestions for further developments of our measures on OpenPrescribing or OpenPrescribing Hospitals please get in touch at bennett@phc.ox.ac.uk.