Keeping up to date with the latest happening in pharmacy practice is important for all PSS members, and with that in mind, the PSS Hospital Chapter proudly presents “What’s New in PL”. This monthly brief update is designed to highlight topics that are published on a reputable resource “The Pharmacist Letter”, which may be of interest to pharmacists. The update is relevant to all pharmacists with sub topics in the areas of clinical and community practice.

Please log on to the PSS website (www.pss.org.sg) to log in and start reading!

Topic of the month: Medication Safety

Preventing harm inpatient: Learn more about potentially medication related serious adverse events and how they can be prevented. Resources and toolkits are available in this article.

Clinical Updates:

1) Aripriprazole and its place in therapy: Atypical antipsychotic aripriprazole is now available as a generic, but what is its place in therapy? Review its indications and uses in this PL update.

New chart available: Comparison of Atypical Antipsychotics.

2) Safety updates on Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Drugs:

a)     New warnings about possible increased risk of heart failure with Saxagliptin

b)     Risk of ketoacidosis with Canagliflozin and other SGLT2 inhibitors

3) Treatment of alcoholic hepatitis: Severe alcoholic hepatitis presents in approximately 20% of alcoholic patients. Learn more about the medications used and their place in therapy.

Chart available: Drug Therapy for Severe Alcoholic Hepatitis

Commonly asked questions on the community pharmacy:

1) Is this a bug bite? Learn how to identify a bug bite and how to choose an appropriate insect repellent.

Chart available: Identifying Bug Bites and Stings.

Patient Education Handout Available: Choosing and using insect repellent.

2) Should I take a probiotic? Do you know that efficacy of probiotic products cannot be extrapolated to other products? Read all about it here. Chart available: Comparison of Common Probiotic Products

3) Can Vitamin B supplementation prevent skin cancer? Find out more about niacinamide and its role in prevention of non melanoma skin cancers.