Background Vitamin D is essential for strong bones because it helps the body use calcium from the diet. Because most people have low levels of vitamin D, correcting to the recommended ranges will bring added value to patient healthcare in hospital.

Purpose To detect patients with low vitamin D levels in an Orthopedic ward. To evaluate the degree of acceptance of the pharmacist's recommendations to correct vitamin D levels by the physicians. To devise an educational session for patients and evaluate the efficacy of the intervention.

Materials and methods From 7/03/2011 to 9/03/2011, total serum 25-hydroxycholecalciferol ((25OH)D₃) was measured in patients on the Orthopedic ward. A lack of vitamin D was defined as ((25OH)D₃) ≤30 ng/mL. The individual recommendation for vitamin D supplementation was written in each patient's medical record by the pharmacist. Patients presenting low vitamin D levels were randomised to enrol in the educational programme, consisting of a 15-min session about vitamin D, nutritional habits, and supplementation with vitamin D. All patients were given an appointment 2 months later for a vitamin D test to evaluate the efficacy of the intervention.

Conclusions There was a significant vitamin D deficiency in the population studied. Pharmaceutical intervention has been proved useful when adjusting vitamin D levels.