What question did this study set out to answer?

This research aims to evaluate the clinical activities of a specialized HIV pharmacist in improving medication management for HIV-infected patients hospitalized outside the ID unit.

February 2, 2026

Evaluating the contribution of a specialist HIV pharmacist medication review for inpatients with HIV: establishing a role for antiretroviral stewardship in a tertiary hospital

Key Points

This research aims to evaluate the clinical activities of a specialized HIV pharmacist in improving medication management for HIV-infected patients hospitalized outside the ID unit.
Conducted a retrospective analysis of electronic medical records from April 2019 to March 2020.
Included all PLHIV with hospital stays longer than 24 hours in non-ID units at a tertiary health service.
Recorded clinical activities, types of medication-related problems, and analyzed data using descriptive statistics and logistic regression.
Clinical activities identified in 63% of 120 admissions.
48.1% of these admissions had medication-related problems requiring intervention.
Majority of activities (78.3%) focused on antiretrovirals and HIV-specific therapeutic management.

Abstract

Abstract Background The benefits of specialist, interdisciplinary antiretroviral stewardship services to improve patient safety and continuity of care are recognised by the Infectious Diseases Society of America, HIV Medicine Association, and the American Academy of HIV Medicine. These benefits include correcting antiretroviral‐associated medication errors, education for healthcare providers, and linkage to care and prevention of viral resistance. Antiretroviral stewardship is not formally practised in Australia. Aim To describe clinical activities performed by an Australian infectious diseases (ID) and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) specialist pharmacist providing supplementary medication reviews for people living with HIV (PLHIV) admitted to hospital under medical units other than the ID unit. Method This was a cross‐sectional, retrospective study. Electronic medical records for all PLHIV with a hospital length of stay of >24 h and admitted to any non‐ID inpatient unit at a large, Australian, tertiary referral health service from April 2019–March 2020 were reviewed. The number and type of clinical activities and medication‐related problems (MRPs) were recorded and data were analysed using descriptive statistics, univariable logistic regression, and multivariable logistic regression. Ethical approval was obtained from the Alfred Hospital Ethics Committee (Reference no: 494/20) and the study conforms with the Australian National statement on ethical conduct in human research . Results Clinical activities occurred in 63% of 120 admissions; 48.1% of these were classified as MRPs requiring intervention and the remainder were proactive provisions of information, education, or advice that might prevent MRPs. The majority of clinical activities (78.3%) were related to antiretrovirals, HIV, or ID therapeutic management. Conclusion This Australian study highlights the important contribution of a specialist HIV pharmacist reviewing medication therapies for PLHIV admitted to hospital. In settings without a specialist HIV pharmacist, antimicrobial stewardship teams should consider incorporating antiretroviral stewardship to optimise medication use and improve outcomes for PLHIV.

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