The Outcomes of Pharmaceutical Care Development for Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients at Pong Hospital, Phayao Province.

Abstract

     This study aimed to investigate the effects of pharmaceutical care development in patients with pulmonary tuberculosis. It was an action research analyzing pre- and post-intervention outcomes. The sample size consisted of pulmonary tuberculosis patients admitted to Pong Hospital after the system development, between May 24, 2025, and June 23, 2026 (13 months). Data was collected from medical records. Outcome data were analyzed using comparative descriptive statistics, and Fisher's exact test was utilized to compare qualitative outcomes. The results revealed that while participating in the study, participants in both groups exhibited some characteristics that were significantly different. These included anti-tuberculosis drug regimens (p=0.024), where all patients in the experimental group (100.0%) received the 2HRZE/4HR regimen while 81.8% of those in the control group received the same regimen; treatment duration extension (p<0.001), where the control group required treatment extension up to 51.5%, which was higher than the experimental group at only 9.1%; and NAT2 genotype testing (p<0.001), in which the experimental group received testing up to 45.5% while the control group received it at only 3.0%. For medication adherence patterns, no statistically significant difference was found (p=0.574), with both groups primarily utilizing self-preparation of medications and being supervised by relatives (DOT). Regarding the final treatment outcomes at the end of treatment, the experimental group achieved a treatment success rate as high as 97.0% with zero mortality, whereas the control group had a treatment success rate of 87.9% and a mortality rate of 12.1%. However, the statistical analysis for the overall treatment outcomes showed no statistically significant difference (p=0.358), and no patients experienced treatment failure or default in either group.