2025/02/26 by Emilia Mäkinen, Tiina Koskenkorva, Anna-Riia Holmström +5
Health Professions · Medicine · #Patient Safety and Medication Errors #Pharmaceutical Practices and Patient Outcomes #Pharmaceutical studies and practices
paper · doi:10.1016/j.healthpol.2025.105285
openalex publication_date 2025/02/26 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/26
• Involving community pharmacies in outpatient medication risk management supports healthcare systems. • Community pharmacies’ integration in medication risk management requires national long-term efforts. • Programme introduces nationwide actions to improve outpatient medication safety in other countries. • Inter-organisational incident reporting system was implemented in 90 % of Finnish community pharmacies. • Medication safety pharmacists were appointed in 90 % of Finnish community pharmacies. Pharmacotherapies are common therapeutic interventions in patient care. Despite most medications being self-managed by patients at home, little attention has been paid to medication risks in the outpatient medication management process. As community pharmacies dispense medicines to outpatients, they are well-positioned to decrease preventable harm by implementing systemic medication risk management practices. This article is a mid-term review of a national development programme to enhance community pharmacies’ involvement in outpatient medication risk management in Finland (Valo programme 2021–2026). The article comprises the programme description utilising the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's framework, and the programme's preliminary mid-term results. Through the programme: 1) the same patient safety incident reporting and learning system used by most Finnish health- and social care (HSC) organisations was implemented in community pharmacies, 2) medication safety culture was promoted by enhancing community pharmacists’ competencies in medication safety, 3) regional collaboration between community pharmacies and HSC organisations was supported through networks, and 4) a national research strategy was created to support outpatient medication safety research. Involving community pharmacies in outpatient medication risk management supports HSC systems. This article introduces nationwide actions that could be utilised in other countries to enhance community pharmacies’ involvement.