6ER-009 Patient satisfaction and knowledge after switching from eviplera to odefsey

Background Tenofovir alafenamide (TAF) is associated with less renal and bone toxicity compared with tenofovir disoproxil (TDF) but with elevation of cholesterol levels. In our hospital, patients were automatically changed from a regimen with Eviplera (rilpivirine (RPV) +emtricitabine (FTC)+TDF) to a regimen with Odefsey (rilpivirine (RPV) +emtricitabine (FTC)+TAF). Patients were informed of the switch by the pharmacist. Patient views on the process of these medication switches have been rarely explored. Purpose To assess the patient satisfaction and knowledge of the switch from RPV/FTC/TDF to RPV/FTC/TAF. Material and methods Patients attending the outpatient pharmacy clinic in the months of August and September 2018 who had been previously treated with RPV/FTC/TDF and who came for the second dispensation to take RPV/FTC/TAF were included. In a face-to-face meeting with the pharmacist or by telephone, patients were asked to complete a survey. Demographic domains included gender, age, nationality of birth, education level and work status. Satisfaction and knowledge questions regarding the medication switch were assessed using a five-point Likert scale of agreement/disagreement. Patients were also asked if the treatment switch had been informed by the physician or the pharmacist. Basic descriptive statistics (frequencies and percentages) were calculated for all survey questions. Results A total of 48 patients underwent the medication switch from RPV/FTC/TDF to RPV/FTC/TAF (43±9 years’ old; 71% males; 75% born in Spain). Most patients (73%) reported understanding why the switch was made, 90% correctly identified that TAF was associated with reduced bone adverse effects and 83% correctly identified that TAF was associated with reduced renal adverse effects. Only 44% of the patients knew that their cholesterol levels might increase. In regard to the brief handout that was given to all patients, only 17% respondents reported receiving written information about the new medication. Ninety-eight per cent of the patients knew RPV/FTC/TAF must be taken with food and 90% knew that proton pump inhibitors were contraindicated. Conclusion Patient education from an ambulatory clinic-based HIV specialist pharmacist resulted in high rates of patient satisfaction and understanding of the switch from TDF to TAF-containing ART. References and/or acknowledgements None. No conflict of interest.