Abstract
Cristine Clarke, coordinator of the Carolina Geriatric Education Center at the University of North Carolina (UNC) in Chapel Hill, knows exactly how much value clinical pharmacists can bring to interprofessional teams that provide primary care for older Americans. After her mother had struggled to bring her hypertension under control, Clarke turned to UNC’s Geriatrics Specialty Clinic, where Clinical Pharmacy Specialist (CPP) Jena Ivey Burkhart brought her expertise to bear. “Jena solved it in about two months,” Clarke said. “She got my mom on the right medication; she managed the side effects. Now my mom, she goes to see her doctor, but really, she wants to see Jena.” Burkhart said Clark’s mother needed something that benefits most seniors: good follow-up by a healthcare team that listens to patients and takes into account their concerns and preferences. “She needed someone following her closely over a course of several weeks, keeping her home blood pressures recorded every so often, and kind of tweaking her medications along the way,” Burkhart said of Clarke’s mother.
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