An overview of United States pharmacopeia chapter 795 and american society of health-system pharmacists guidelines for nonsterile compounding.

Hospital pharmacy departments should be compliant with the standards of United States Pharmacopeia Chapter 795. In order to remain compliant, small hospitals and institutions must properly train their staff to ensure that their compounding procedures and the resultant preparations are in compliance with the standards in Chapter 795. For reasons outlined in this article, it is more challenging for large hospitals and institutions to remain compliant; they require a specialized staff that must keep all compounding personnel updated with the constant changes in compounding practices and standards outlined by the United States Pharmacopeial Convention. This article summarizes Chapter 795 on Pharmaceutical Compounding Nonsterile Preparations, key points in the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists TAB guidelines on compounding nonsterile products in pharmacies, and author recommendations on applying these standards and guidelines in hospital pharmacy departments.