Pharmacy

Hours of Operation

Monday – Friday

The Pharmacy Department at Nemaha County Hospital plays an integral part of the medication administration process and reconciliation of medications at all levels of the hospital stay (admission, discharge to home or transfer to a different hospital). During the medication use process at NCH, a pharmacist’s involvement is noted throughout:

Admission Medication Reconciliation

Medication Reconciliation is the process of creating the most accurate list possible of all medications a patient is taking prior to admission into the hospital. To ensure accuracy, our pharmacists conduct an extensive review of all home medications, including prescription and over the counter medications.

Computerized Physician Order Entry (CPOE)

All orders are entered via CPOE, and are then verified by the nursing staff and a pharmacist. Before the first dose is administered, it must be verified by a pharmacist. Any allergies, interactions and duplicate therapies are addressed a second time at this phase.

Administration

Using Bar-Coding technology, our pharmacists have implemented a process in which all medications are scanned at the patient’s bedside before administration. The nurse scans the patient’s armband and then scans the medication. It’s at this time the nurse verifies it’s the right patient, right medication, right dose, right time and the right route of administration.

Discharge Medication Reconciliation

On discharge, the patient will receive a list of medications to continue, a list of medications to stop, a list of new medications and a list of medications that may be the same but have changed in some way during the hospital stay (i.e. dose or frequency change).  

Prescribing Phase

Our pharmacists are part of the Patient Centered Care Team, which allows them to be involved at the initial ordering of medications. They make therapy and dosing recommendations during this phase. This is where interactions, allergies and any duplicate therapies are addressed. 

Dispensing

Using Bar-Coding technology, our pharmacists have implemented an automated medication dispensing process. After the medication order is entered via CPOE and verified by the nursing staff and a pharmacist, the order electronically crosses to our automated dispensing medication cabinet. The nurse is able to retrieve the medication from the cabinet by selecting the patient’s name, and selecting the desired medication from a list of prescribed medication orders. The drawer in the cabinet containing the specific medication selected from the list will open. The medication is removed from the pocket and the medication’s bar code is scanned by the nurse to ensure it’s the correct medication.

Monitoring

The monitoring phase is conducted throughout the patient’s entire hospital stay. Our pharmacists work closely with the nursing staff to monitor the patient’s response to medications and make therapy adjustments when needed due to decreased kidney function or unwanted side effects.  

Preventing Medication Errors is our top priority in the NCH Pharmacy Department.

The process of Medication Reconciliation is a vital piece in prevention of medication errors and ensures patient safety. Our Pharmacy Team is committed to providing the best pharmaceutical care and achieving the greatest outcomes for our patients.