Evaluation of an Interprofessional Academic-Practice Partnership in End of Life Care

Introduction: The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to evaluate an interprofessional academic-practice partnership in end of life care by examining patient medication outcomes, the contributions of student pharmacists and a pharmacy preceptor to care teams, and student learning experiences. Methods: Retrospective chart review assessed polypharmacy differences in hospice patients with a primary terminal diagnosis of non-Alzheimer’s dementia between two patient groups; Group 1 managed on interprofessional care teams within the pharmacy partnership, and Group 2, managed on teams without a pharmacist. Team members who interacted with student pharmacists and the pharmacy preceptor participated in semi-structured key informant interviews to document perceptions of pharmacy contributions to care teams and the organization. At the end of their APPE, students completed reflective writings regarding their learning. Results: Patients in Group 1 were on statistically significant fewer medications than Group 2 at both week 4 and weeks 7-12 following admission. Five conceptual themes emerged from interviews: pharmacists as team medication experts, improved patient outcomes, interprofessional collaboration, patient/caregiver trust in medication regimens, and desire for sustainability. Student reflections included the following learning themes: teamwork, respect, value, and patient-centered care. Conclusions: The addition of a pharmacist on interprofessional care teams decreased the average number of medications in the non-Alzheimer’s end of life patient population. Team members identified value-added contributions of student pharmacists and the pharmacy preceptor that enhanced team efficiency and patient care. Student pharmacists recognized these contributions and the experience served as an exemplar of interprofessional practice.

Leveraging Expertise from Community Resources to Improve the Role of the Pharmacist in HIV Testing and Counseling

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) epidemic continues to be a major global public health issue. Moreover, disparities continue to persist in HIV among racial and ethnic minority populations, with the highest rates of new diagnoses in Black/African American and Hispanic/Latino men who have sex with men in the United States. Pharmacists are one of the most accessible and trusted health care professionals. Therefore, it is imperative that student pharmacists are educated on culturally-competent HIV testing and risk behaviors counseling. This study describes the development of a partnership between a pharmacy school and a community-based organization to offer an HIV counseling and testing training program to help develop skills in delivering HIV testing services. The HIV counseling and testing training program contains learning modules that provide a wide array of in-depth information about HIV patient care in the community. The partnership allows for the enjoyment of a myriad of benefits for students, the pharmacy program, the community-based organization, and the public health of the community-at-large. Students feel more prepared and comfortable working with patients in discussing HIV transmission risk factors and test results as a result of this training. Such partnerships support the pharmacist’s role in the public health arena. A successful and durable relationship between a community partner and a school of pharmacy is a feasible strategy for pharmacy progress in public health.

Pharmacogenomics Testing Confirmation of Carbamazepine Induced DRESS Reaction of an HLA-A*31:01 Positive, Polypharmacy Patient

Pharmacogenomics (PGx) melds well with polypharmacy as another tool to identify medication related problems (MRPs) more specifically so they may be solved most effectively. PGx can pre-emptively assist in medication selection, medication dosing or identify better medications for patients already taking a medication. PGx can also confirm suspect medications of causing MRPs such as adverse drug reactions (ADRs) or drug interactions. In this case, PGx testing confirmed presence of a serious human leukocyte antigen (HLA) drug reaction with eosinophilia and systemic symptoms (DRESS) after a suspect medication had been stopped.

Conversion Disorder in a Pharmacogenomics, Polypharmacy Patient: Case Report

Background: Conversion disorder (CD) is a relatively common psychiatric disorder likely encountered by clinical pharmacists but probably not easily identified by pharmacists. Case Summary: This is a patient case where a patient with a tremor was referred to the pharmacist led, polypharmacy, pharmacogenomics (PGx) service to rule out a PGx cause due to medication metabolism. No pharmacologic or PGx cause was found for the tremor which helped support and confirm a diagnosis of CD. Practice Implications: By working collaboratively with psychiatrists, neurologists, physical medicine colleagues, clinical pharmacists may add value to patient care by assisting with diagnoses and appropriate treatment.

Efficacy and Safety of Innovative Experimental Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T-cells versus Axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta) for the Treatment of Relapsed/Refractory Large B-Cell Lymphoma (LBCL): Matching Adjusted Indirect Comparisons (MAICs) and Systematic Review

Despite favorable results of CAR T-cell therapy for relapsed/refractory large B-cell lymphoma (R/R LBCL), several challenges remain, including incomplete response, immune-mediated toxicity, and antigen-loss relapse. We delineated the relative clinical benefit of the novel approaches compared to the currently approved CAR T-cell therapies. In the absence of head-to-head comparisons and randomized controlled trials, we performed Matching Adjusted Indirect Comparisons to quantify the relative efficacy and safety of experimental CARs against Axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta), the first FDA-approved CAR. A total of 182 R/R LBCL patients from 15 clinical trials with individual patient data (IPD) were pooled into eight populations by their CAR T-cell constructs and +/- ASCT status. The study endpoints were Progression-Free Survival (PFS), grade ≥ 3 cytokine release syndrome (CRS), and grade ≥ 3 neurotoxicity (NT). Tandem CD19.CD20.4-1BBζ CARs indicated favorable efficacy and safety, whereas the co-infusion of CD19 & CD20 with 4-1BBζ showed no clinical benefit compared to Yescarta. Third generation CD19. CD28. 4-1BBζ, and sequential administration of autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) and CD19. CARs presented statistically insignificant yet improved PFS and safety except for ASCT combined intervention which had suggestively higher NT risk than Yescarta. CARs with modified co-stimulatory domains to reduce toxicity (Hu19. CD8.28Zζ and CD19. BBz.86ζ) presented remarkable safety with no severe adverse events; however, both presented worse PFS than Yescarta. Third-generation CARs demonstrated statistically significantly lower NT than Yescarta. CD20. 4-1BBζ data suggested targeting CD20 antigen alone lacks clinical or safety benefit compared to Yescarta. Further comparisons with other FDA-approved CARs are needed.

Interprofessional Continuous Glucose Monitoring for Underserved Adults with Type 2 Diabetes on Insulin or Secretagogues

Background: Literature describing continuous glucose monitoring for underserved patients, including those with type 2 diabetes or at risk for hypoglycemia, is lacking. Methods: An interprofessional internal medicine residency team implemented a blinded CGM service for underserved adults with type 2 diabetes with at-goal glycated hemoglobin (A1C) taking insulin or secretagogues. Results: The 2-week blinded CGM service (N=44) significantly reduced time in hypoglycemia (<70 mg/dL) by 4.1% (P=0.0038). Time-in-target-range increased significantly (4.31%, P=0.025). Body weight, number of medications, and daily insulin dose decreased significantly. Overall, A1C remained stable, indicating no worsening of diabetes control associated with the service. Conclusions: The interprofessional blinded CGM service influenced improved glycemic control in this vulnerable population.

Pharmacy-Based Point-of-Care Testing: How a “Standard of Care” Approach Can Facilitate Sustainability

COVID-19 spurred rapid expansion of pharmacy-based point-of-care testing (POCT). This growth was aided, in part, by federal guidance that removed state-level regulatory uncertainty surrounding the ability of pharmacists to administer, interpret, and act on the results of tests. Surveys suggest there is considerable confusion about the legality of these services by state regulators. To ensure the sustainability of POCT services over time, states should consider adopting a standard of care approach to regulation, allowing a flexible framework for practice innovation and expansion over time.

Expanding Pharmacy Services to Support Public Health

Pharmacists have had long-standing roles in public health, and the COVID-19 pandemic has broadened and accentuated their efforts in this area. Many pharmacists may be interested to expand pharmacy services to further support public health. While not intending to be exhaustive, this paper suggests potential areas for increased engagement and provides ideas for pharmacists who want develop and implement new initiatives to optimize the health of their patients and communities. The core functions of public health and the natural history of disease are presented as models to identify opportunities for pharmacists’ interventions. A three-step framework with practical strategies and helpful resources is proposed to identify and operationalize new services. Finally, the pharmacist’s role in clinical-community linkages is presented. It is hoped that this paper will stimulate additional ideas and actions in the pharmacy community to support public health.

Lean into Clinical Pharmacy: An Experience in Implementing Key Performance Indicators and Gemba Walks into Clinical Pharmacy Services

Purpose: The Lean methodology was applied to clinical metrics by a critical care pharmacy team. The experiences associated with the development and implementation of clinical metrics and their impact on daily workflow are described. Summary: The Lean methodology has been introduced into the healthcare system as a means of process improvement, which can eliminate waste through appropriate medication utilization. At OhioHealth Riverside Methodist Hospital, the department of pharmacy was tasked with the development of clinical metrics after a health system wide Gemba walk was initiated. The pharmacy department's critical care team developed a strategy identifying and evaluating clinical metrics pertaining to their everyday workflow. Each clinical metric was evaluated in accordance with a pre-defined goal. Metrics requiring heavy documentation and those in which the pharmacist does not have autonomous authority to manage were often challenging to implement and were less successful. Throughout this process, the lessons learned focused on generating ideas that were easily documented, evidence-based, and department specific. The critical care team discovered that the outcome of the most successful metrics highlighted clinical pharmacist value and data generated could be used to support funding for additional resources. Conclusion: The critical care pharmacy team developed a streamlined process to implement clinical metrics as means of identifying areas for improvement using the Lean methodology.

“Brown Bag Clinic”: A Pharmacist-led Approach to Reduce Heart Failure Hospital Readmission

Objectives: Heart failure (HF) affects approximately 6 million in the United States and despite guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT), still more than 20% of patients are readmitted within 30 days.1,2 This study evaluated the impact of a “pharmacist-led HF Brown Bag Clinic” (BBC) on HF patient outcomes including readmissions and mortality. Methods: This retrospective study, conducted at an academic medical center, included adult patients 18 to 89 years old with HF presenting to the BBC 7-14 days post HF hospitalization. Those failing to attend the BBC within 30 days of hospital discharge were in the control group. Our electronic medical records were used to capture patients’ baseline characteristics and describe pharmacists’ interventions. Thirty- and ninety-day post-discharge HF readmission and all-cause mortality were evaluated. Results: A total of 32 patients met the inclusion criteria; 15 receiving intervention and 17 controls. A total of 18 HF hospital readmissions occurred, 4 (22%) readmissions in the intervention group and 14 (78%) in the control group (p= 0.06). Hospital readmissions within 30 days and 90 days were greater in the control group compared with the intervention group (18% vs. 7% and 41% vs. 21% respectively). Conclusion: A pharmacist-led post-discharge clinic demonstrated numerically fewer HF hospital readmissions compared with a scheduled but “no show” control group.