Opportunities for Progressive Pharmacy Practice in Homecare

1990 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 19-27
Author(s):  
Roger Klotz

This article will describe the many opportunities for progressive pharmacy practice in the homecare area, particularly when dealing with parenteral therapies. Progressive pharmacy practice in the home requires that the technical and clinical pharmacy expertise first developed in the institutional setting be applied in a decentralized environment. The decentralization of high-tech care into the patient's home presents major challenges and opportunities to all health care professionals. The pharmacist, in particular, is given the opportunity to provide progressive pharmacy services, especially clinical services, as a result of patient need and agency requirements (ie, JCAHO, State Pharmacy Board, HCFA). This group of patients has generally a higher acuity than traditional ambulatory and homecare patients; thus, health care professionals, reimbursement organizations, and regulatory and accrediting agencies are very concerned about the coordination of patient care. The pharmacist's knowledge base and interest in drug therapy is well suited for and used to benefit the patient and health-care team; this is important in many areas of patient care. A knowledge of drug therapies is required in predischarge planning, patient training, plan of care development, and patient monitoring. Therefore, the hospital and/or homecare pharmacist can be involved from the start (patient selection) to the completion of therapy for the homecare patient. Since homecare patients have an increasing acuity, the traditional hospital pharmacy services need to be provided and expanded upon so that safe and efficacious therapy is provided.

2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 3
Author(s):  
AK Mohiuddin

Over the past 50 years, the role of pharmacists has evolved along with the health care needs of our population. In addition to dispensing medications and ensuring patient safety, today’s pharmacists are taking a larger role as medical counselors, educators and advocates. They are integral part of the health care team, and are among the most trusted and accessible health care professionals. This accessibility allows them to perform more patient care activities, including counseling, medication management, and preventive care screenings. Beyond the care provided to individual patients, pharmacists have expanded their reach to influence the public health of communities. A pharmacist is uniquely positioned to provide disease state management through appropriate medication therapy management that has been demonstrated to improve patient outcomes and decrease overall health care costs. This role is more important than ever as the environment is demanding new practice and payment models that are required to further optimize care and outcomes while addressing the unsustainable increases in health care costs.   Article Type: Review


Author(s):  
Lisa D. Bishop ◽  
Zahava R. S. Rosenberg-Yunger ◽  
Shelita Dattani

Background: This study explored the perceptions of Canadian pharmacists about the barriers and facilitators of providing opioid stewardship activities in pharmacy practice, considering the subsection 56(1) class exemption under Health Canada’s Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA). Methods: Qualitative key informant telephone interviews were conducted with a convenience sample of pharmacists from across Canada. We included community or primary health care team-based pharmacists who self-identified as having experience with providing care for patients using opioids via the exemptions. All transcripts were de-identified, and thematic analysis was conducted to identify themes. Ethics approval was obtained. Results: Twenty pharmacists from community and primary health care teams, from all provinces and from urban and rural practices were interviewed. The following themes emerged: 1) optimization of opioid-related patient care, 2) jurisdictional impact and 3) awareness and education. Barriers and facilitators for opioid stewardship activities were identified. Discussion: The exemptions facilitated the pharmacists’ ability to provide opioid stewardship and positively affect patient care by providing continuity of and timely access to care. Our research demonstrated that pharmacists can responsibly and independently manage opioid prescriptions within this expanded scope, demonstrating the valuable contribution pharmacists can have in opioid stewardship. Conclusion: Pharmacists were willing and able to care for patients receiving opioid medication and thereby played a role in helping address the opioid crisis. The benefits of these exemptions were demonstrated beyond situations related to the COVID-19 pandemic and warrant consideration for consistent implementation across provincial and territorial jurisdictions, thereby ensuring equitable access to care for all Canadians.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnes T. Black ◽  
Marla Steinberg ◽  
Amanda E. Chisholm ◽  
Kristi Coldwell ◽  
Alison M. Hoens ◽  
...  

Abstract Background The KT Challenge program supports health care professionals to effectively implement evidence-based practices. Unlike other knowledge translation (KT) programs, this program is grounded in capacity building, focuses on health care professionals (HCPs), and uses a multi-component intervention. This study presents the evaluation of the KT Challenge program to assess the impact on uptake, KT capacity, and practice change. Methods The evaluation used a mixed-methods retrospective pre-post design involving surveys and review of documents such as teams’ final reports. Online surveys collecting both quantitative and qualitative data were deployed at four time points (after both workshops, 6 months into implementation, and at the end of the 2-year funded projects) to measure KT capacity (knowledge, skills, and confidence) and impact on practice change. Qualitative data was analyzed using a general inductive approach and quantitative data was analyzed using non-parametric statistics. Results Participants reported statistically significant increases in knowledge and confidence across both workshops, at the 6-month mark of their projects, and at the end of their projects. In addition, at the 6-month check-in, practitioners reported statistically significant improvements in their ability to implement practice changes. In the first cohort of the program, of the teams who were able to complete their projects, half were able to show demonstrable practice changes. Conclusions The KT Challenge was successful in improving the capacity of HCPs to implement evidence-based practice changes and has begun to show demonstrable improvements in a number of practice areas. The program is relevant to a variety of HCPs working in diverse practice settings and is relatively inexpensive to implement. Like all practice improvement programs in health care settings, a number of challenges emerged stemming from the high turnover of staff and the limited capacity of some practitioners to take on anything beyond direct patient care. Efforts to address these challenges have been added to subsequent cohorts of the program and ongoing evaluation will examine if they are successful. The KT Challenge program has continued to garner great interest among practitioners, even in the midst of dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic, and shows promise for organizations looking for better ways to mobilize knowledge to improve patient care and empower staff. This study contributes to the implementation science literature by providing a description and evaluation of a new model for embedding KT practice skills in health care settings.


10.2196/16055 ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. e16055
Author(s):  
Charlotte Romare ◽  
Lisa Skär

Background Anesthesia departments and intensive care units represent two advanced, high-tech, and complex care environments. Health care in those environments involves different types of technology to provide safe, high-quality care. Smart glasses have previously been used in different health care settings and have been suggested to assist health care professionals in numerous areas. However, smart glasses in the complex contexts of anesthesia care and intensive care are new and innovative. An overview of existing research related to these contexts is needed before implementing smart glasses into complex care environments. Objective The aim of this study was to highlight potential benefits and limitations with health care professionals' use of smart glasses in situations occurring in complex care environments. Methods A scoping review with six steps was conducted to fulfill the objective. Database searches were conducted in PubMed and Scopus; original articles about health care professionals’ use of smart glasses in complex care environments and/or situations occurring in those environments were included. The searches yielded a total of 20 articles that were included in the review. Results Three categories were created during the qualitative content analysis: (1) smart glasses as a versatile tool that offers opportunities and challenges, (2) smart glasses entail positive and negative impacts on health care professionals, and (3) smart glasses' quality of use provides facilities and leaves room for improvement. Smart glasses were found to be both a helpful tool and a hindrance in caring situations that might occur in complex care environments. This review provides an increased understanding about different situations where smart glasses might be used by health care professionals in clinical practice in anesthesia care and intensive care; however, research about smart glasses in clinical complex care environments is limited. Conclusions Thoughtful implementation and improved hardware are needed to meet health care professionals’ needs. New technology brings challenges; more research is required to elucidate how smart glasses affect patient safety, health care professionals, and quality of care in complex care environments.


Author(s):  
Kathel Dunn ◽  
Joanne Gard Marshall ◽  
Amber L. Wells ◽  
Joyce E. B. Backus

Objective: This study analyzed data from a study on the value of libraries to understand the specific role that the MEDLINE database plays in relation to other information resources that are available to health care providers and its role in positively impacting patient care.Methods: A previous study on the use of health information resources for patient care obtained 16,122 responses from health care providers in 56 hospitals about how providers make decisions affecting patient care and the role of information resources in that process. Respondents indicated resources used in answering a specific clinical question from a list of 19 possible resources, including MEDLINE. Study data were examined using descriptive statistics and regression analysis to determine the number of information resources used and how they were used in combination with one another.Results: Health care professionals used 3.5 resources, on average, to aid in patient care. The 2 most frequently used resources were journals (print and online) and the MEDLINE database. Using a higher number of information resources was significantly associated with a higher probability of making changes to patient care and avoiding adverse events. MEDLINE was the most likely to be among consulted resources compared to any other information resource other than journals.Conclusions: MEDLINE is a critical clinical care tool that health care professionals use to avoid adverse events, make changes to patient care, and answer clinical questions.


2018 ◽  
Vol 53 (7) ◽  
pp. 703-708 ◽  
Author(s):  
Dorice Hankemeier ◽  
Sarah A. Manspeaker

Context:  The ability to engage in interprofessional and collaborative practice (IPCP) has been identified as one of the Institute of Medicine's core competencies required of all health care professionals. Objective:  To determine the perceptions of athletic trainers (ATs) in the collegiate setting regarding IPCP and current practice patterns. Design:  Cross-sectional study. Patients or Other Participants:  Of 6313 ATs in the collegiate setting, 739 (340 men, 397 women, 2 preferred not to answer; clinical experience = 10.97 ± 9.62 years) responded (11.7%). Main Outcome Measure(s):  The Online Clinician Perspectives of Interprofessional Collaborative Practice survey section 1 assessed ATs' perceptions of working with other professionals (construct 1), ATs engaged in collaborative practice (construct 2), influences of collaborative practice (construct 3), and influences on roles, responsibilities, and autonomy in collaborative practice (construct 4). Section 2 assessed current practice patterns of ATs providing patient care and included the effect of communication on collaborative practice (construct 5) and patient involvement in collaborative practice (construct 6). Between-groups differences were assessed using a Kruskal-Wallis H test and Mann-Whitney U tests (P < .05). Results:  Athletic trainers in the collegiate setting agreed with IPCP constructs 1 through 4 (construct 1 = 3.56 ± 0.30, construct 2 = 3.36 ± 0.467, construct 3 = 3.48 ± 0.39, construct 4 = 3.20 ± 0.35) and indicated that the concepts of constructs 5 and 6 (1.99 ± 0.46, 1.80 ± 0.50, respectively) were sometimes true in their setting. Athletic trainers functioning in a medical model reported lower scores for construct 5 (1.88 ± 0.44) than did those in an athletic model (2.03 ± 0.45, U = 19 522.0, P = .001). A total of 42.09% of the ATs' patient care was performed in collaborative practice. Conclusions:  Athletic trainers in the collegiate setting agreed that IPCP concepts were beneficial to patient care but were not consistently practicing in this manner. Consideration of a medical model structure, wherein more regular interaction with other health care professionals occurs, may be beneficial to increase the frequency of IPCP.


1982 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Helen Evers

ABSTRACTThis paper aims to examine aspects of the nature of multidisciplinary teamwork in geriatric care. First, some of the medical profession's current views of teamwork in geriatrics will be summarized. Second, case studies from a research project on care of geriatric patients in hospital will be used to illustrate some of the strengths and limitations of the adoption of a teamwork approach by health care professionals. Evidence from research suggests that under only a few circumstances does care of the geriatric patient match the images of teamwork as portrayed in the professional literature. This finding in part reflects piecemeal developments in interprofessional responsibilities and relationships in policy and practice of care of the elderly.


1986 ◽  
Vol 20 (12) ◽  
pp. 989-992 ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard A. Hutchinson ◽  
David P. Vogel ◽  
Kenneth W. Witte

The development and expansion of clinical pharmacy over the past 15 years have resulted in several debates. One debate that was very lively in the late 1970s concerned proper reimbursement for clinical pharmacy services. Although this debate is less heated now, its importance is even more significant with today's major changes in health care reimbursement. This article reviews the key reasons for the original debate and discusses how recent changes have increased and added direction to the debate. A model is presented that the authors believe represents the key to the increasing acceptance of the pharmacist's clinical role.


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