When a person seeks medical care, a team impacts that care. Primary care teams, home care groups, and even medical transportation companies play a role in patients’ health outcomes.
One of the most overlooked teams that can influence patient care is the community pharmacy. Whether someone is living with an acute illness or multiple chronic illnesses, they utilize a pharmacy to help better manage their conditions.
Pharmacists have a unique and trusted role with patients and are proven to improve outcomes. In recent years, pharmacists have been added to the teams of integrated health networks, playing significant roles in direct patient care and supporting medical providers in drug education, medicine monitoring and identifying drug-related problems.
This collaboration impacts patient health, with more than 90% of physicians in a recent study reporting improved medication management with patients. Although these interdisciplinary teams are becoming more common, providers still need the support of the community pharmacy to dispense prescriptions. This is where major impacts can be made.
In 2020, amid the pandemic, new opportunities arose within the pharmacy setting. Pharmacists began performing patient care services such as point-of-care testing, vaccinations and bolstering collaborative practice agreements to support the growing shortage of PCPs.
Along with the expansion of clinical services, the utilization of clinically-trained pharmacists in the community setting has been trending upwards. Services such as comprehensive medication reviews through Medicare Part D’s MTM program have been a common practice in the community since the mid-2000s.
Medication management in community pharmacy
The patient care team should act as a checks and balances system. Pharmacists can play a prominent role in improving medication adherence, especially for those patients with chronic illnesses that they see regularly. Patients are loyal to their pharmacy, and community pharmacies have frequent interactions with their patients. Our pharmacy team interacts with a patient on average 16 times a year — 12 more times than the average PCP; with that continued access to patients, providers lean on us to fill in care gaps and optimize patient outcomes.
Community pharmacists have access to patients’ medication histories and have a bird’s eye view of all medications prescribed, catching interactions and discrepancies that may cause harm.
Being on the front lines of patient care, they can spot if a patient may be struggling with misunderstanding physician instructions or on their way to a drug dependency.
Pharmacists also play a role in the changing landscape of long-term and at-home care. With many people seeking to age in place, Medicare is starting to recognize that medication management pharmacy providers can fill in gaps in care for people living with chronic conditions in their homes. By providing easier and more affordable access to at-home pharmacy solutions, pharmacies address many pain points that concern the chronically ill not admitted to facilities. Community pharmacies can also provide DME, medication counseling, vaccinations, point-of-care testing, and act as a liaison between the home care team and the primary physician.
Reduction of readmissions
By playing a crucial role in medication management, pharmacists help reduce hospital readmissions. In a series of studies conducted in 2019, a reduction of up to 30% in hospital readmissions was observed when pharmacists were involved in the discharge process.
One of the most critical factors in reducing patient hospital readmission is the transition of care. Pharmacists who take an active role in this transition stand to affect the readmission rate, reducing healthcare costs overall. Studies estimate that 27% of hospital readmissions could be avoided if the transition of care and patient follow-ups were handled effectively. Centennial Pharmacy’s TransitionCare addresses this issue, providing assessment of patient needs, organization of home services, formulating solid discharge plans to reduce readmission incidents, and addressing one of the largest barriers to non-adherence: medication cost.
Pharmacists provide a direct link to the prescriber for any cost issues. When doctors prescribe medications, they may not be aware of exorbitant costs to the patient. Each patient has different insurance and medication needs, and sometimes there can be sticker shock at the pharmacy counter. Pharmacists play a significant role in reducing patient out-of-pocket cost, submitting insurance approvals, and suggesting alternatives — all solutions that greatly impact a patient taking their medication as prescribed.
Regardless of being embedded in a health system or on the corner of main street, pharmacy teams who prioritize working with providers and providers who collaborate with pharmacists are bound to make the most impact across all patient variables, including accessibility, cost and outcomes. Pharmacists are clinically trained healthcare professionals proven to make positive outcomes to medication management, hospital readmissions and overall patient health. It’s time to stop overlooking the pharmacy team and start utilizing them to optimize patient care.
Lindsay Dymowski is President of Centennial Pharmacy Services, a leading medication-at-home pharmacy, and co-founder and principal of The Centennial Group, a pharmacy management company supporting community pharmacies and health systems.
The opinions expressed in McKnight’s Long-Term Care News guest submissions are the author’s and are not necessarily those of McKnight’s Long-Term Care News or its editors.
