Assessment of medication use for type 2 diabetes mellitus among patients with heart failure and evaluation of the effectiveness of clinical pharmacy interventions in Vinh Long City, Vietnam

Introduction: Type 2 diabetes mellitus and heart failure often occur together, posing a complex clinical challenge that raises the risk of death and complicates blood sugar control. However, data on the suitability of antidiabetic medications for this group are limited, highlighting the potential of clinical pharmacy interventions to improve adherence to guidelines. Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the appropriateness of medication use and its association with blood glucose control outcomes in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) complicated by heart failure. Additionally, it assessed the effectiveness of clinical pharmacist interventions on medication use and blood glucose control among these patients at Vinh Long General Hospital during 2024-2025. Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional study was divided into two phases: pre- and post-intervention by clinical pharmacists. The study included inpatients diagnosed with T2DM and heart failure who were treated in the Department of Cardiovascular Internal Medicine. Data were entered and analyzed in SPSS version 20.0. Pre- and post-intervention comparisons were performed using the chi-square (χ²) test. Results: The rate of appropriate medication use was only 54.2%, with suboptimal drug selection and timing of administration. Following the intervention, there was a marked improvement in the personalization of treatment regimens and adherence to guidelines. The rate of appropriate medication use increased to 69.2%, with 100% appropriateness in drug choice and dosing. The percentage of patients achieving target HbA1C levels at discharge increased significantly from 18.7% to 35.5% after intervention. Moreover, the mean hospital stay decreased significantly post-intervention, underscoring the program’s positive impact. Conclusion: The study findings demonstrated that enhancing adherence to prescribing recommendations not only improves treatment quality but also supports personalized therapy tailored to patient characteristics. These data provide crucial real-world evidence to inform the development of more comprehensive intervention programs and to establish hospital-specific treatment guidelines tailored to local conditions.