SafeMed: Using pharmacy technicians in a novel role as community health workers to improve transitions of care
| Autor: | James E. Bailey, Sahar Rashed, Paula C. Bell, Angel M. Jones, Satya Surbhi, Michael O. Ugwueke |
|---|---|
| Rok vydání: | 2016 |
| Předmět: |
Male
Patient Transfer medicine.medical_specialty Scope of practice Medication history education Pharmacy Technicians Pharmacist Medically Underserved Area Pharmacology (nursing) Pharmacy 030226 pharmacology & pharmacy 03 medical and health sciences Professional Role 0302 clinical medicine Nursing Medication therapy management Health care medicine Humans 030212 general & internal medicine Program Development Disease management (health) Community Health Workers Pharmacology business.industry Tennessee Community-Institutional Relations House Calls Drug therapy problems Family medicine Female business |
| Zdroj: | Journal of the American Pharmacists Association. 56:73-81 |
| ISSN: | 1544-3191 |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.japh.2015.11.011 |
| Popis: | Objectives To describe the design, implementation, and early experience of the SafeMed program, which uses certified pharmacy technicians in a novel expanded role as community health workers (CPhT-CHWs) to improve transitions of care. Setting A large nonprofit health care system serving the major medically underserved areas and geographic hotspots for readmissions in Memphis, TN. Practice innovation The SafeMed program is a care transitions program with an emphasis on medication management designed to use low-cost health workers to improve transitions of care from hospital to home for superutilizing patients with multiple chronic conditions and polypharmacy. Evaluation CPhT-CHWs were given primary responsibility for patient outreach after hospital discharge with the use of home visits and telephone follow-up. SafeMed program CPhT-CHWs served as pharmacist extenders, obtaining medication histories, assisting in medication reconciliation and identification of potential drug therapy problems (DTPs), and reinforcing medication education previously provided by the pharmacist per protocol. Results CPhT-CHW training included patient communication skills, motivational interviewing, medication history taking, teach-back techniques, drug disposal practices, and basic disease management. Some CPhT-CHWs experienced difficulties adjusting to an expanded scope of practice. Nonetheless, once the Tennessee Board of Pharmacy affirmed that envisioned SafeMed CPhT-CHW roles were consistent with Board rules, additional responsibilities were added for CPhT-CHWs to enhance their effectiveness. Patient outreach teams including CPhT-CHWs achieved increases in home visit and telephone follow-up rates and were successful in helping identify potential DTPs. Conclusion The early experience of the SafeMed program demonstrates that CPhT-CHWs are well suited for novel expanded roles to improve care transitions for superutilizing populations. CPhT-CHWs can identify and report potential DTPs to the pharmacist to help target medication therapy management. Critical success factors include strong CPhT-CHW patient-centered communication skills and strong pharmacist champions. In collaboration with state pharmacy boards and pharmacist associations, the SafeMed CPhT-CHW model can be successfully scaled to serve superutilizing patients throughout the country. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
| Externí odkaz: |
|