Greater Glasgow and Clyde Medicines

Key messages:

• The GGC Creatinine Clearance (CrCl) calculator will now use Adjusted Body Weight (AdjBW) rather than Maximum Body Weight (MBW) to estimate renal function for patients who weigh more than their Ideal Body Weight (IBW).

• AdjBW provides a better estimate of renal function for patients who are overweight or obese.

• AdjBW is IBW plus 40% of the difference between ideal and actual body weight.

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The Emergency Care Summary (ECS) for patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia may show no record of any antipsychotic prescription; this may indicate they are prescribed a specialist medicine such as clozapine or an antipsychotic depot.

To access the full blog via Microsoft Sway, click here

To access the full blog via Microsoft Sway, click here

To access the full blog via Microsoft Sway, click here

Key Messages

• Non-pharmacological approaches should be used first-line to manage stress and distress in dementia.
• Psychotropic medications carry the risk of side effects which may cause serious avoidable harms (e.g. falls, sedation, etc) and should be used as a last resort in the management of stress and distress - other causes should be ruled out including infection, constipation, and pain.
• If required, the lowest effective dose of psychotropic medication should be prescribed for the shortest possible period with regular review.
• For patients under Community Mental Health Teams (CMHT) psychotropic medication changes should be made in collaboration with their CMHT.

To access the full blog via Microsoft Sway, click here

To access the full blog via Microsoft Sway, click here

• The Antibiotic therapy following 4 days IV Gentamicin  guideline has been updated following a review by the GGC Antimicrobial Utilisation Committee (AUC)