Staying in touch with your patients to improve their care

Abstract

Lately, I’ve been hearing a lot about pharmacy “touches.” An ambulatory care pharmacist colleague described a shift in recent years in the way she documents her impact on patient care in her multidisciplinary clinic practice. She said that she previously tracked only the number of scheduled visits for chronic disease management, but she has realized that she affects patients’ care in so many other ways. Whether in a hallway consult with a physician about a drug therapy change, in an impromptu patient education session, or through efforts to help a patient afford a new medication, she improves care through many avenues, and she now keeps track of all these big and small patient “touches.” This issue of Pharmacy Today highlights innovations in specialty pharmacy—where pharmacists work with often costly, “high-touch” medications (page 28). Some specialty pharmacies are increasingly taking an integrated approach to care, with pharmacists focusing on patient education as part of a multidisciplinary team. Pharmacists practicing in this model cite the benefits of having a pharmacist “closer to patients and their providers” to manage medication access and monitor drug therapy. You’ll also find the latest information on vaping and vaping-related illness (page 27), learn about an increasing trend of antibiotic use without a prescription (page 26), and get new guidelines on treating migraines in children (page 14) in this issue of Today. Stay up to date with the latest Beers Criteria on medication use in older adults with this month’s CPE article (page 42). Whether counseling patients in the pharmacy, interacting with providers in clinic, or helping patients to access and safely use their specialty medications, we are touching patients’ lives to improve their care. Investing in these small but essential daily interactions with our patients helps us to connect with them, stay in touch with their needs, and bring value to their care. Have a great Today!