Pharmacists’ Involvement in Medication Management Along the Continuum of Care: Challenges, Lessons Learned, and Implications for Health Systems

Continuously Reevaluate Your Services

As implementation of our pharmacy bundle of services began, meeting early and often was essential to identify issues and adjust our workflow to resolve those issues quickly. When the inpatient component of the pharmacy bundle of services was first implemented, rounding pharmacists and pharmacy leadership initially met on a weekly basis to provide feedback on the practice model and develop resolutions for any issues. However, it is important to also include other disciplines in the evaluation process. For the Meds for Home program, pharmacy leadership not only met with MHCs but also with providers, nurses, case managers, and social workers for feedback on how to improve the service. Although the workflow of our pharmacy bundle of services are more established, evaluations still occur albeit less frequently.

Conclusion

Pharmacists’ involvement in transitions of care should become part of the daily responsibility. Health systems should understand how efforts to expand pharmacists’ interventions align with overall hospital goals. Many hospitals may already have programs in place to help with transitions of care. Pharmacists can help expand current efforts through increased visibility to physicians and patients as well as collaboration with outpatient pharmacies to ensure medications are effective and affordable for patients long-term.

Note: The project described was supported by grant no. 1C1CMS331053-01-00 from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The content of this paper is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services or any of its agencies. The research presented was conducted by the awardee. Findings may or may not be consistent with or confirmed by the findings of the independent evaluation contractor.

Corresponding author: Vi Gilmore, PharmD, BCPS, Clinical Pharmacy Specialist, Internal Medicine, The Johns Hopkins Hospital, 600 N. Wolfe Street, Carnegie 180, Baltimore, MD 21287, vdo1@jhmi.edu.

Financial disclosures: None.