Foreword
The ASHP Foundation Pharmacy Forecast has been a valuable source of insight and guidance
about our profession as it is influenced by or influences external factors in our
environment. ASHP and the ASHP Research and Education Foundation (“the Foundation”)
present this ninth edition of the annual Pharmacy Forecast and are pleased to disseminate
the Pharmacy Forecast through AJHP, providing readers with easy access to the report.
The staff of AJHP has provided substantial editorial support for this publication,
and we appreciate their assistance.
The Pharmacy Forecast is a vital component of ASHP’s efforts to advance pharmacy practice
leadership, and the Foundation appreciates the many pharmacists and others who have
contributed to the David A. Zilz Leaders for the Future fund, which provides the resources
to develop the report. The Foundation is also grateful to Omnicell for their support
of the Zilz fund, which has made the Pharmacy Forecast possible. The Pharmacy Forecast
could not be created without the contributions of the report’s founding editor, William
Zellmer; members of the Forecast 2021 Advisory Committee; Forecast Panelists (FPs)
who responded to the forecast survey; and chapter authors. ASHP and the Foundation
are indebted to those individuals who have helped make the 2021 edition a success.
Over the past 8 years, the Pharmacy Forecast has provided insight into emerging trends
and phenomena that have impacted the practice of pharmacy and the health of patients
in health systems. The value of the report is determined by its value to health-system
pharmacists and health-system pharmacy leaders as they use the report to inform their
strategic planning efforts. The Pharmacy Forecast is not intended to be an accurate
prediction of future events. Rather, the report is intended to be a provocative stimulant
for the thinking, discussion, and planning that must take place in every hospital
and health system in order for those organizations to succeed in their mission of
caring for patients and advancing the profession of pharmacy. Some may disagree with
the opinions of the FPs or the positions taken by individual chapter authors with
respect to their vision of the future. That is acceptable and desirable. Also, the
report reflects a consensus of the national direction and may not reflect what is
likely to occur in your geographic region or state. Reflect those differing opinions
in your organization’s strategic planning process and chart a course for your organization
that is consistent with your beliefs, and the Pharmacy Forecast will have met its
objective of encouraging planning efforts of health systems.
We welcome your comments on this new 2021 edition of the Pharmacy Forecast. Suggestions
for future forecasts can be sent to any of the forecast editors through the Foundation’s
Pharmacy Forecast website at http://www.ashpfoundation.org/pharmacyforecast and will
be considered for future editions.
Introduction and Methods
Joseph T. DiPiro, PharmD, FCCP, FAAAS, Dean, School of Pharmacy, Virginia Commonwealth
University, Richmond, VA
Address correspondence to Dr. DiPiro (jtdipiro@vcu.edu).
An underlying assumption supporting the need for the Pharmacy Forecast is that many
factors influencing our profession and pharmacy services are not directly under our
control, yet we can take actions that enhance the likelihood of favorable outcomes
within this environment. Those influencing factors may be as a specific state or national
policy or regulation, or as nebulous as the trend toward globalization (or anti-globalization).
Other than the COVID-19 pandemic, the influencing factors such as the prominence of
“big data,” issues of personal privacy, financing and health access are not new and
have emerged over time. Within that context, then, we have greatest control over the
scope of our pharmacy enterprise and the workforce within that enterprise, and some
control over those factors where we can advocate to the decision makers (such as health-system
administrators, legislators, and government agency officials). The perspective gained
from reading the 2021 Pharmacy Forecast is most effectively used within the process
of strategic planning as part of environmental scanning or when identifying strengths,
weaknesses, opportunities, or threats (SWOT). In addition, the recommendations provided
below can be part of the institution’s strategic planning action steps.
FORECAST METHODS
The methods used to develop the 2021 Pharmacy Forecast were similar to those used
in the previous editions, drawing on concepts described in James Surowiecki’s book
The Wisdom of Crowds.
1
According to Surowiecki, the collective opinions of “wise crowds”—groups of diverse
individuals in which each participant’s input is provided independently, drawing from
their own locally informed points of view—can be more informative than the opinion
of any individual participant. This process is particularly valuable when addressing
phenomena that are not well suited to quantitative predictive methods. A critical
requirement for successfully creating crowd-based knowledge is establishing a systematic
method of combining individual beliefs into a collective opinion—the Pharmacy Forecast
uses a survey of carefully selected pharmacy leaders to derive our environmental scan.
The 2021 Pharmacy Forecast Advisory Committee (see membership list in the Foreword)
began the development of survey questions by contributing lists of issues and concerns
they believed will influence health-system pharmacy in the coming 5 years. That list
was then expanded and refined through an iterative process, resulting in a final set
of 7 themes, each with 6 focused topics on which the survey was built. Each of 42
survey items was written to explore the selected topics and was pilot tested to ensure
clarity and face validity.
As in the past, Pharmacy Forecast survey respondents—the Forecast Panelists (FPs)—were
selected by ASHP staff after nomination by the leaders of the ASHP sections. Nominations
were limited to individuals known to have expertise in health-system pharmacy and
knowledge of trends and new developments in the field. The size of and representation
within the Forecast Panel were intended to capture opinions from a wide range of pharmacy
leaders.
The Pharmacy Forecast survey instructed FPs to read each of the 42 scenarios represented
in survey items and consider the likelihood of those scenarios occurring in the next
5 years. They were asked to base their response on their firsthand knowledge of current
conditions in their region, not on their understanding of national circumstances.
The panel was carefully balanced across the census regions of the United States to
reflect a representative national picture. They were asked to provide a top-of-mind
response regarding the likelihood of those conditions being very likely, somewhat
likely, somewhat unlikely, or very unlikely to occur.
This year we chose to present (in related articles in this issue of AJHP) additional
insights on Pharmacy Forecast topics in the light of major societal factors, the U.S.
presidential election, the COVID-19 pandemic, and racial equity and social justice
within our country. William Zellmer was invited to reflect on the developing political
environment after our national election and how it could impact healthcare.
2
Suzanne Shea was invited to address the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on selected
topics within the Pharmacy Forecast survey.
3
And Bruce Scott was invited to address the intersection of racial equity and healthcare.
4
FORECAST SURVEY RESULTS
The strength (and possibly validity) of predictions generated using the “wisdom of
the crowd” method is largely dependent on the nature of the panelists responding to
the forecast survey. Therefore, it is important to understand the composition and
characteristics of the panel.
A total of 319 FPs were recruited to complete the forecast survey. Responses were
received from 272 (an 85.3% response rate, similar to the response rates in previous
years). Most of the FPs (83%) had been in practice for greater than 10 years, and
53% had been in practice for greater than 20 years. Most FPs (53%) described their
practice setting as a teaching hospital or health system, while 14% of FPs were from
nonteaching hospitals or health systems. Twenty-one percent were from academia, compared
with 13% the previous year. FPs reported that their primary organizations offered
diverse services, including home health or infusion care (47%), oncology (69%), specialty
pharmacy (59%), ambulatory care (77%), pediatric care (55%), and hospice care (38%).
Sixty-five percent of their organizations had a retail pharmacy and 23% provided nursing
home/long-term care.
Many of the FPs hold the title of chief pharmacy officer, director of pharmacy, or
associate/assistant director of pharmacy (14%, 17%, and 6% of FPs, respectively).
Eleven percent of FPs listed their primary position as “clinical pharmacist” (generalist
or specialist) and 3% as “clinical coordinator.” Another 21% described their primary
role as faculty. Eight percent of respondents indicated informatics/technology specialist
as their primary position (compared with 6% the previous edition). The remainder of
FPs included leaders and practitioners at varying levels and with varying titles.
Fifty-nine percent of FPs were employed by hospitals with 400 or more beds, and 12%
of respondents were from hospitals of less than 400 beds. Overall, the composition
of the Forecast Panel was similar to that in previous years. As shown in Table 1,
the percent of total responses from each U.S. region ranged from 6% in New England
and the Middle South to 20% in the Great Lakes region. In the 2021 survey, every region
was represented by a minimum of 15 FP respondents.
Table 1.
Forecast Survey Responses by Region
Region
Percent of 272 Total Responses
New England (ME, NH, VT, MA, RI, CT)
6
Mid-Atlantic (DE, NY, NJ, PA)
9
South Atlantic (MD, DC, VA, WV, NC, SC, GA, FL)
18
Southeast (KY, TN, AL, MS)
11
Great Lakes (OH, IN, IL, MI, WI)
20
Western Plains (MN, IA, MO, ND, SD, NE, KS)
11
Middle South (AR, LA, OK, TX)
6
Mountain (MT, ID, WY, CO, NM, AZ, UT, NV)
7
Pacific (WA, OR, CA, AK, HI)
12
CONTENTS OF THE 2021 PHARMACY FORECAST
Each section of the report provides a summary of the survey findings, assessment and
perspective of the chapter author, and strategic recommendations. While the individual
survey items focus on a specific projection of the future, the full breadth of discussion
in each chapter is broad and links related items when appropriate.
The first chapter, by Erin Fox and Aron Kesselheim, focuses on the global drug supply
chain. A generally accepted assumption is that the world at large and the United States
will likely experience calamities such as the COVID-19 pandemic and breaches in cybersecurity
that could disrupt the availability or reduce the quality of medications. What can
and should we do within health systems to prepare for these possibilities?
While access to healthcare has always been an issue, it has received greater visibility
and urgency as our nation struggles with racial equity. Marie Chisholm-Burns, Christopher
Finch, and Christina Spivey addressed healthcare access topics. The emergence of new
communication technology provides greater opportunity to expand access to underserved
populations. Advancement in pharmacists’ scope of practice and technician roles provide
further opportunity for extension of pharmacy services to populations in need.
As pharmacy services and healthcare in general have become more data-complex, effective
and ethical use of data has become ever more important. Jannet Carmichael and Joy
Meier discuss the implications of data use to develop more efficient and consistent
models of care, and also the ethical issue of privacy in systems that have access
to a greater extent of patient and employee data.
Healthcare financing, a persistent topic for past Forecast editions, is addressed
by Thomas Woller and Brian Pinto and includes a wide scope of topics from pharmacy
benefit manager transparency to contracts with online distributors and value-based
contracts. The tax-exempt status of health systems is another topic of discussion
in the chapter as requirements for the charity-care requirement are under scrutiny
by federal and state governments.
Patient safety is addressed in the chapter by James Hoffman and David Bates and continues
the discussion from previous editions of Pharmacy Forecast. The authors discuss the
“zero harm” paradigm as an opportunity to change the way we think about medication
safety. They also address the role of the pharmacists as patient safety leaders and
the roles of pharmacy and therapeutics committees. They tie in staff resilience and
well-being to patient safety.
We are all aware that the scope of the pharmacy enterprise in health systems has grown
and changed substantially in the past decade. John Armitstead and Dorinda Segovia
discuss expansion of access to pharmacists in primary care settings as well as the
potential for pharmacist redeployment from traditional acute care positions. They
also discuss institutional credentialing processes and likely changes in the extent
and documentation of pharmacy services.
Along with changes in the pharmacy enterprise, there have been and will continue to
be changes in our pharmacy workforce, and these issues are addressed by Melanie Dodd
and Mollie Ashe Scott. Among the issues that have been before us for years are pharmacist
provider status and prescribing authority. They also discuss the opportunity to enhance
pharmacist roles through automatic verification of medication orders and expanded
roles of technicians. Finally, the pharmacist workforce, including resident recruitment,
could significantly be impacted by a reduction in the number of pharmacy graduates
across the country.
USER’S GUIDE TO THE PHARMACY FORECAST
The focus of the Pharmacy Forecast is on large-scale, long-term trends that will influence
us over months and years and not on day-to-day situational dynamics. The 2021 edition
of the Pharmacy Forecast differs from past editions by inclusion of new, timely topics
while continuing the discussion of topics that have remained important from previous
years.
The report is intended to stimulate thinking and discussion, providing a starting
point for individuals and teams who wish to proactively position themselves and their
teams and departments for potential future events and trends rather than be reactive
to those things that occur.
This is the most appropriate level of focus for strategic planning. As the process
of strategic planning should involve pharmacy staff at all levels, the Pharmacy Forecast
provides guidance to anyone participating in health-system strategic planning activities,
and it is recommended that the report be reviewed by all involved.
When using the Pharmacy Forecast, it is recommended that planners review at least
1 or 2 past editions in addition to this new report; many of the observations and
recommendations that are 1 or 2 years old remain important to consider. Past editions
of the Pharmacy Forecast can be found on the ASHP Foundation website at http://www.ashpfoundation.org/pharmacyforecast.
Those organizations involved in education or training should consider the use of the
Pharmacy Forecast as a teaching tool. Many educators and residency preceptors use
the report as part of coursework, seminars, or journal club sessions to help engage
pharmacy trainees in thinking about the future of the profession they are preparing
to enter.
Finally, as the pharmacy workforce is increasingly relied upon to provide system-wide
leadership, the Pharmacy Forecast addresses many issues that are relevant well beyond
the traditional boundaries of pharmacy and the medication-use process. The content
of the report should inform the broadened scope of responsibility that many pharmacists
now take. The Pharmacy Forecast should be shared with other senior health-system leaders
and executives as a resource to help them understand the challenges facing pharmacy
and to help them recognize the way emerging healthcare trends will affect many other
areas of health systems.
Disclosures
Dr. DiPiro currently serves on the AJHP Editorial Advisory Board.
Reference
1.
Surowiecki
J.
The wisdom of crowds. Anchor; 2005.
2.
Zellmer
WA.
How pharmacists can help heal democracy in America. Am J Health-Syst Pharm. 2021;78(6):xxx-xxx.
3.
Shea
SB.
Reflections on the COVID-19 pandemic and Pharmacy Forecast 2019.
Am J Health-Syst Pharm. 2021;78(
6):xxx-xxx.
4.
Scott
B.
Racial and ethnic equality is also about healthcare. Am J Health-Syst Pharm. 2021;78(6):xxx-xxx.
The Certainty of Uncertainty for a Global Supply Chain
Erin R. Fox, Pharm.D., BCPS, FASHP, Senior Director, Drug Information and Support
Services, University of Utah Health, and Adjunct Associate Professor, University of
Utah College of Pharmacy, Salt Lake City, UT
Aaron S. Kesselheim, M.D, J.D., M.P.H., Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School,
Director, Program on Regulation, Therapeutics, And Law (PORTAL), Division of Pharmacoepidemiology
and Pharmacoeconomics, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA
Address correspondence to Dr. Fox (Erin.Fox@hsc.utah.edu).
INTRODUCTION
With a global pandemic and continuing uncertainty regarding the stability and quality
of the medication supply chain, health-system pharmacists must be prepared for significant
disruptions to “normal” healthcare delivery, including disruption of medication procurement.
ALLOCATION OF SCARCE RESOURCES
Drug shortages are not new to healthcare providers in the United States, and the SARS-CoV-2
pandemic has highlighted the fragility of the global medication supply chain. The
number of ongoing and active drug shortages increased from 202 in 2017 to 276 in 2020,
with many of the shortages in 2020 exacerbated by the current pandemic.
1
Primary management of shortages falls mainly to pharmacists. Forecast Panelists (FPs)
overwhelmingly agreed (90%) that at least 75% of health systems will develop guidelines
through ethics committees or similar processes to allocate finite resources during
a disease pandemic (Figure 1, item 1). In the early days of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic,
as hospitals were struggling with allocation of personal protective equipment and
ventilators, the crisis standards of care that states generated helped provide some
clarity and transparency to the process. Bioethics researchers such as those at the
Hastings Center and the Berman Institute are also suggesting guidance for allocating
scarce resources.
Figure 1 (Global Supply Chain).
Forecast Panelists’ responses to the question, “How likely is it that the following
will occur, by the year 2025, in the geographic region where you work?”
Most health systems suffered substantial financial shortfalls from fewer patient encounters
and cancelled procedures during statewide shutdowns. While many FPs (81%) were optimistic
that federal resources would be made available to hospitals for surge planning, early
reporting has been disappointing (Figure 2, item 2). Substantial federal funds were
provided to wealthy health systems, with 20 large chains receiving $5 billion in federal
grants despite holding more than $100 billion in cash.
2
Smaller hospitals, by contrast, received insufficient federal assistance.
MEDICATION QUALITY AND SUPPLY CHAIN
A key recommendation from a recent report by the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s)
Drug Shortages Task Force was to develop a manufacturing quality rating system to
provide incentives for drug manufacturers to invest in improving their facilities.
3
Ratings would allow FDA to more clearly communicate differences between manufacturers
in medication quality to health systems that purchase medications or to the public.
Since 2013, FDA leaders have been advocating for such a system to reduce the likelihood
of shortages and encourage low-performing manufacturers to improve.
4
The FPs were almost evenly split on the question of whether FDA would rate the effectiveness
of manufacturers’ quality management systems, with 47% agreeing and 53% disagreeing
(Figure 1, item 4). Unfortunately, cases of quality problems, including with angiotensin
II receptor blockers and metformin, have continued in recent years, sometimes also
contributing to shortages. Despite several drug shortage provisions in the Coronavirus
Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act),
5
such as requiring manufacturers to provide FDA with more information regarding reasons
for and durations of shortages and asking manufacturers to establish contingency plans
relating to supply disruptions, a method to rate the quality of medications was not
included.
A concern during the initial stages of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic was the global nature
of the U.S. drug supply chain. Many clinicians were concerned that drug shortages
would increase due to manufacturing closures in China or that some nations would halt
imports to reserve supplies for their people. A list of potentially affected products
was challenging to prepare due to the proprietary nature of much drug manufacturing
information, including the source of raw materials and site or name of the manufacturer.
FPs overwhelmingly (92%) believed that global issues such as trade restrictions, pandemics,
or climate change will increase the potential for drug shortages (Figure 1, item 5).
Fortunately, supply line breakdowns due to global COVID-19-related closures did not
come to pass. As more patients came down with COVID-19 in the United States, drug
shortages increased, but those shortages were due to an increased demand resulting
from high patient volumes rather than global causes. Despite this reality, politicians
moved to bolster U.S. drug manufacturing. The U.S. Biomedical Advanced Research and
Development Authority (BARDA) provided a $345 million contract to provide generic
medications and the raw materials intended to produce medications needed to meet COVID-19-related
demand.
6
Congressional representatives also introduced multiple bills related to moving drug
manufacturing back to the United States.
INTERNATIONAL MARKET AS A SOURCE OF LOWER DRUG PRICES
Despite potential concerns over a global supply chain, two-thirds of FPs (68%) believe
the United States will adopt rules to import prescription drugs from other countries
to help lower drug prices (Figure 1, item 6). The United States spends about $450
billion per year on prescription drugs and pays by far the most per capita for brand-name
drugs in the world. Inexpensive generic drugs are among the most cost-effective healthcare
interventions, and prices of some older, off-patent medications have been increased
substantially, leading to increased healthcare system spending and lack of access
for patients.
Importation of prescription drugs has been proposed for decades, but prior presidential
administrations were reluctant to push for more vigorous implementation of importation
in the face of opposition by the pharmaceutical industry. While importation of single-source
brand-name drugs may not be feasible, FDA may develop pathways for responding to generic
drug shortages (or price hikes) by facilitating the regulatory approval of overseas
manufacturers of those products. Forty percent of generic medications without production
competition in the United States had approved versions made by independent manufacturers
outside of the United States, and importation could therefore help ensure lower prices.
7
STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PRACTICE LEADERS
Develop or enhance your health system’s guidelines for allocating scarce pharmaceutical
resources.
Collaborate with other health systems and local and state agencies to plan for pandemic-related
surges or distribution of scarce resources such as vaccines. Establish information-sharing
systems to ensure level loading between organizations.
Insist on receiving publicly reported quality measures when signing drug acquisition
contracts, and ensure that contracts signed on behalf of health systems also include
a measure of quality.
Encourage public policy advocates within your circle of influence (e.g., at your health
system, within state and national hospital and pharmacy associations) to support legislation
that reduces unnecessary spending on medications and improves the quality of pharmaceutical
manufacturing.
Disclosures
Dr. Fox is an unpaid volunteer member of the advisory board for Civica Rx and a member
of the AJHP Editorial Advisory Board. The University of Utah Drug Information Service
(UUDIS) has a contract to provide Vizient (a group purchasing organization) with drug
shortage information. The total value of the contract represents less than 5% of the
total budget for UUDIS.Dr. Fox also currently serves on the AJHP Editorial Advisory
Board. Dr. Kesselheim’s work is funded by Arnold Ventures and the Harvard-MIT Center
for Regulatory Science.
References
1.
University of Utah Drug Information Service. Drug shortages statistics.
https://www.ashp.org/Drug-Shortages/Shortage-Resources/Drug-Shortages-Statistics (accessed
September 4, 2020).
2.
Drucker
J
,
Silver-Greenberg
J
,
Kliff
S
. Wealthiest hospitals got billions in bailout for struggling health providers (May
25, 2020). New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/25/business/coronavirus-hospitals-bailout.html
(accessed August 13, 2020).
3.
Food and Drug Administration. Report – drug shortages: root causes and potential solutions.
https://www.fda.gov/drugs/drug-shortages/report-drug-shortages-root-causes-and-potential-solutions
(accessed August 13, 2020).
4.
Woodcock
J
,
Wosinska
M
. Economic and technological drivers of generic sterile injectable drug shortages.
Clin Pharmacol Ther.
2013; 93(2):170-6.23337525
5.
United States Senate. S 3548 Coronvirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES)
Act.
https://www.congress.gov/116/bills/s3548/BILLS-116s3548is.pdf (accessed August 13,
2020).
6.
Weintraub
A
. How Civica helped under-the-radar Phlow nab a $354M COVID-10 manufacturing deal
(May 21, 2020). Fierce Pharma. https://www.fiercepharma.com/manufacturing/how-under-radar-phlow-and-civica-nabbed-a-354m-covid-19-manufacturing-deal
(accessed August 13, 2020).
7.
Gupta
R
,
Bollyky
TJ
,
Cohen
M
,
Ross
JS
,
Kesselheim
AS
. Affordability and availability of off-patent drugs in the United States – the case
for importing from abroad: observational study. BMJ.
2018; 360:k831.29555641
Access to Healthcare: Positioning Healthcare Systems for Improvement
Marie Chisholm-Burns, Pharm.D., M.P.H., M.B.A., FCCP, FASHP, FAST, Dean and Professor,
University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Pharmacy, and Professor of
Surgery, University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Medicine, Memphis,
TN
Christopher K. Finch, Pharm.D., FCCM, FCCP, Chair and Professor, Department of Clinical
Pharmacy and Translational Science, University of Tennessee Health Science Center
College of Pharmacy, Memphis, TN
Christina Spivey, Ph.D., LMSW, Associate Professor, Department of Clinical Pharmacy
and Translational Science, University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of
Pharmacy, Memphis, TN
Address correspondence to Dr. Marie Chisholm-Burns (mchisho3@uthsc.edu).
INTRODUCTION
Barriers to healthcare threaten the health of those in front of the closed doors—and
the health of everyone. Given the COVID-19 pandemic and the renewed awareness of health
disparities in the United States, it is timely to discuss items pertaining to healthcare
access, including utilization of telehealth services, pharmacy technicians and their
role in medication access, legal regulations concerning pharmacists’ scope of practice,
alignment of formulary decisions, and inpatient access to non-FDA-regulated therapies.
TELEHEALTH
Greater than 90% of Forecast Panelists (FPs) expect significant expansion of patient
access to telehealth in rural and other underserved locations, including use of telehealth
to provide pharmacist patient care services and improve outcomes (Figure 2, items
1 and 2). Advances in technological adaptability will and have paved the way for this
to occur. In fact, we have already witnessed a considerable growth in telehealth during
the COVID-19 pandemic, with patient consultations being conducted remotely.
1
Healthcare payers, such as Blue Cross Blue Shield, are expanding coverage (e.g., increasing
reimbursement and waiving cost-sharing) for telehealth visits.
1,2
Limited access to technology may be a potential barrier in some underserved populations
and needs to be rectified. Nevertheless, use of telehealth, including telepharmacy
(Figure 2, item 2), for services such as transitions of care and medication therapy
monitoring and recommendations will likely continue to grow due to its convenience,
efficiency, accessibility, and cost-effectiveness.
Figure 2 (Access to Healthcare).
Forecast Panelists’ responses to the question, “How likely is it that the following
will occur, by the year 2025, in the geographic region where you work?”
SCOPE OF PRACTICE
Seventy-one percent of FPs believe that pharmacy technicians will be actively engaged
with patients and interprofessional care teams in identifying, assessing, and resolving
barriers to medication access (Figure 2, item 3). An interprofessional care team,
which included pharmacy technicians, worked with patients to identify, assess, and
resolve medication access barriers; increase medication access; and significantly
improve therapeutic outcomes and patient quality of life.
3
Although 29% of FPs believe it is not likely that pharmacy technicians will take on
this expanded role, with adequate training pharmacy technicians can successfully perform
beyond traditional dispensing support roles. It is incumbent upon pharmacy leaders
to assess the roles pharmacy technicians can play, as extending their scope of practice
may improve care and reduce costs to institutions and the patients they serve.
Ninety-one percent of FPs believe 50% of states will have a legal provision through
which pharmacist scope of practice can be expanded when public health emergencies
are declared (Figure 2, item 4), as was seen in 2009 during the H1N1 pandemic with
increased authorization of pharmacists to administer the H1N1 vaccine.
4
Likewise, in response to the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, the Public Readiness and Emergency
Preparedness (PREP) Act authorized licensed pharmacists to order and perform COVID-19
tests and limited the authority of state agencies to prevent distribution of tests
by pharmacists.
5
With immunization administration and point-of-care testing by pharmacists becoming
more commonplace, the expansion of scope of practice, including prescribing authority
and more comprehensive medication management, during public health emergencies is
a natural step forward in the best interests of public health.
FORMULARY ALIGNMENT
FPs were divided on whether at least 25% of health systems will align their inpatient
drug formularies with the formularies of other health systems, insurers, and health
plans that serve their region (Figure 2, item 5). While having seamless transitions
from one setting to the next as they relate to medication therapy would be ideal,
the reality of having a perfectly aligned formulary is rife with logistical challenges,
including:
Lack of national formulary guideline adoption
Medication shortages
Prescriber preferences
Wholesaler and/or group purchasing organization contracts, discounts, and preferred
products
Direct-to-consumer advertising
Tertiary care hospitals’ different formulary needs relative to community hospitals,
which provide more general care
Variation in patient insurance medication coverage
Inconsistencies among insurers and reimbursement models
Given these challenges and many more, the realization of a community or regional formulary
will continue to face obstacles and likely not be fully supported in the near future.
NON-FDA-REGULATED THERAPIES
The majority of FPs do not believe that at least 75% of health systems’ policies will
allow inpatients broadened access to non-FDA-regulated therapies (Figure 2, item 6),
likely due to concerns regarding liability and uncertainty as to the lack of regulatory
standards, safety, and efficacy of these products. For example, since cannabis use
is illegal under federal law and because hospital accreditation occurs through the
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, health systems that provide access to
cannabis put themselves at significant risk, as cannabis use could result in violations,
loss of federal funding, or other substantial penalties.
6
Although at least 50% of respondents in pediatric inpatient settings permitted home
herbal preparations and supplements, adverse events have resulted from use of supplements.
7
Universal screening of home products by institutional pharmacies is needed to reduce
potential risks posed by these products,
7
but screening may be prohibitive due to resource limitations in health systems. The
Joint Commission weighed in on nonhospital medications with standard MM.03.01.05,
which states, “the hospital safely controls medications brought into the hospital
by patients, their families, or licensed independent practitioners.”
8
Thus, allowing these products into the health system brings additional pharmacy responsibilities:
physical inspection and verification of home product and ingredients, manual entry
into the medication administration record, drug interaction checking, product storage,
and special labeling for barcode-assisted medication administration. In addition,
if inpatient settings began dispensing non-FDA-regulated products, added problems
would no doubt materialize in the form of lack of inventory control and formulary
management. All of these pose opportunities for error, increased cost, and breaches
in safety for the patient.
STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PRACTICE LEADERS
Build on the expanded use of telehealth during the coronavirus pandemic to implement,
permanently, telepharmacy that will enhance the medication-related outcomes of all
patients in your health system, including those in underserved areas.
Assess how pharmacy technicians in your pharmacy enterprise can be engaged more broadly
and effectively by patient care teams to improve medication access; enhance technician
training and roles accordingly.
Evaluate with other pharmacy leaders in your state the desirability and feasibility
of making permanent any expanded pharmacy scope of practice that was implemented in
response to the coronavirus pandemic or other public health emergencies.
Pursue with the pharmacy leaders of other health systems in your region the prospect
for greater harmonization of formularies and the formulary decision-making process.
Initiate a process within your health system of examining (and revising if necessary)
existing policies related to use of non-FDA-regulated therapies.
Disclosures
The authors have declared no potential conflicts of interest.
References
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Blue Cross Blue Shield Association. Media statement: Blue Cross and Blue Shield Companies
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Pharmacy Analytics and Use of Big Data
Jannet M. Carmichael, B.S., Pharm.D., BCPS, President, Pharm Consult NV LLC, Reno,
NV
Joy Meier, Pharm.D., PA, BCACP, Chief Health Informatics Officer, VA Sierra Pacific
Network, Pleasant Hill, CA
INTRODUCTION
Pharmacists are uniquely qualified and inherently responsible for assuming a significant
role in pharmacy data analytics.
1
Most health systems have focused on health information technology (HIT) installation
and data storage, which includes advanced clinical systems, electronic health records,
business intelligence, and analytics tools—the “things” that collect the data.
2
The time has come to place more emphasis on the output of these systems and harness
this vast knowledge through the analysis, use, and dissemination of that data. Integrating
an informatics pharmacist as a core team member enhances the likelihood that big data
will be used for administrative and clinical decision making.
3
Pharmacy informatics, as defined by the Healthcare Information and Management Systems
Society (HIMSS), focuses on medication-related data and knowledge within the continuum
of healthcare systems—including its acquisition, storage, analysis, use and dissemination—in
the delivery of optimal medication-related patient care and health outcomes.
2
HIT and health informatics (HI) are not separate from pharmacy operations and clinical
pharmacy (i.e., they do not constitute a “third pillar”), as some have suggested.
4
In fact, more emphasis should be put on integrating pharmacy analytics, defined as
the leveraging and use of data from HIT systems, to optimize clinical practice outcomes
and drive innovation within pharmacy operations. Big data analytics and use empower
healthcare systems to strategically support cost-efficient evidence-based decisions
and improve individual and population health and outcomes.
HEALTH SYSTEMS’ USE OF BIG DATA
Along with data usage for clinical and administrative purposes, health systems will
be confronted with use cases that will present both ethical and legal challenges.
For example, employee-related data may be collected and analyzed for quality improvement
within the institution, but at the same time employee privacy should be protected.
Survey items 1 and 2 relate to use of electronic surveillance technology to track
the location and activities of workers for the purpose of performance evaluation and
the development of policies that protect personal-privacy rights of employees while
they are being tracked. The amount of time a clinician spends in each patient’s electronic
health record (EHR) or communicating with another health professional is already tracked
within EHR systems. Forecast Panelists (FPs) had a split response regarding the likelihood
of electronic surveillance being used for performance evaluation (Figure 3, item 1).
Use of this information for employee contact tracing during a pandemic, or to improve
work-flow, may be more helpful than punitive. FPs were split on whether health systems
will have policies that protect personal-privacy rights of employees associated with
electronic surveillance (Figure 3, item 2). No doubt these policies will be affected
by societal and ethical concerns about human surveillance by authorities, be they
governments, businesses, or employers.
Two-thirds of FPs thought that over the next 5 years health systems would prohibit
the sale of aggregated, de-identified patient and provider data to third parties (Figure
3, item 3). While there are few technical limitations to information exchange in compliance
with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act or regulations, many
health systems see health information as proprietary and may not wish to share data
from their EHR with other pharmacists or providers of care outside the health system.
4
There may be few reasons to share provider data for marketing purposes, but there
are many potential benefits to data standardization, exchange, and stewardship to
improve patient outcomes and decrease costs. Regulatory involvement may be needed
to standardize and provide the level playing field needed for all systems to participate
equally in data sharing.
HI PHARMACIST ENGAGEMENT
Most FPs indicated that analytics will be routinely used to leverage population level
data for prioritizing patients for pharmacist care (Figure 3, item 4). This may be
based on the knowledge that hospitals and health systems cannot afford to provide
pharmacist-review of every medication treatment order. Pharmacy informaticists’ guidance
on how to apply population-level data efficiently will be essential. Sophisticated
algorithms are being developed through the use of machine learning and artificial
intelligence, and 73% of FPs anticipate EHR data will be used to compute optimal drug
dosages and individualize therapies to patient-specific variables (Figure 3, item
5). It remains to be seen whether this approach will be applied broadly to all drug
doses or limited to high-risk therapies. Likewise, 69% of FPs believe it likely that
algorithms applied within the EHR will detect instances when a medication order deviates
from the institution’s “historical” pattern of use (Figure 3, item 6). Such systems
should prioritize “evidence-based” recommendations over historic patterns of use.
Pharmacist HI professionals will be needed to assign parameters to develop, analyze,
and support these clinical decision tools and further analyze the effects of their
use on outcomes.
Figure 3 (Analytics and Big Data).
Forecast Panelists’ responses to the question, “How likely is it that the following
will occur, by the year 2025, in the geographic region where you work?”
STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PRACTICE LEADERS
Recruit, resource, and expand\ a team of pharmacist HI professionals with strong clinical
decision-making skills. pharmacists trained to make appropriate evidence-based decisions
for individual patients are prerequisite to designing systems for hundreds or thousands
through computer algorithms. Ensure that these professionals contribute far beyond
the installation and integration of computer hardware and software for HIT systems,
and include training in the ability to analyze and use data.
Ensure that pharmacy HI professionals work collaboratively with other HI professionals
throughout the health-system to identify clinical and ethical issues related to patients
and employees. Pharmacy HI professions should have the competence and capability to
evaluate commercial applications of artificial intelligence and identify problems
or issues in the medication-use process that merit development of an artificial intelligence
application internally.
Engage in implementation, analysis, and utilization of big data that supports all
aspects of patient care across multiple hospital systems and requirements for data
sharing. Analytics and patient outcomes should drive the strategic direction of pharmacy
operations and clinical pharmacy service decisions, as well as safe and evidence-based
medication use throughout the healthcare system.
Incorporate advanced sets of core knowledge into pharmacy informatics residency training
that include design, analysis, use, and evaluation of data to improve clinical and
population health processes and outcomes, enhance patient and health professional
interactions with the health system, and strengthen the ability of communities and
individuals to manage their health.
5
Create new pharmacy service offerings (e.g., granular, interactive data-driven dashboards
of actual clinical care outcomes) that provide evidence-based medication use guidance
to healthcare providers in all service areas, that remove barriers, and that improve
patient outcomes and medication use.
Promote organizational learning to better understand the opportunities and limitations
of the institution’s big data. As analytic processes develop and mature, ensure that
clinical and operational outcomes are assessed for effectiveness and beneficial impact.
Disclosures
Dr. Carmichael currently serves on the AJHP Editorial Advisory Board. Dr. Meier has
declared no potential conflicts of interest.
References
1.
American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. ASHP statement on the pharmacist’s
role in clinical informatics. Am J Health-Syst Pharm.
2016; 73:410-3.26953286
2.
HIMSS: Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society. Accessed June 20, 2020.
www.himss.org
3.
Matsuura
GT
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Weeks
DL
. Use of pharmacy informatics resources by clinical pharmacy services in acute care
hospitals. Am J Health-Syst Pharm.
2009; 66:1934-8. 10.2146/ajhp080534
19850788
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Belford
S
,
Peters
SG
. Technology innovations and involvement by pharmacy leaders. Am J Health-Syst Pharm.
2019; 76:89-91.
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Gadd
CS
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EB
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JJ
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. Domains, tasks, and knowledge for health informatics practice: results of a practice
analysis. J Am Med Inform Assoc.
2020; 27:845-52. 10.1093/jamia/ocaa018
32421829
Healthcare Financing and Delivery: Leading Through Uncertainty
Thomas Woller, M.S., FASHP, System Vice President, Pharmacy Services, Advocate Aurora
Health, Waukesha, WI
Brian Pinto, Pharm.D., M.B.A., Senior Principal, Government Affairs, Cigna, Washington
DC
Address correspondence to Mr. Woller (tom.woller@aah.org).
INTRODUCTION
Like many other aspects of medical care, healthcare financing and delivery was affected
immediately by the COVID-19 pandemic. Federal and state governments diverted much
of their attention to respond to the pandemic, resulting in less focus on other issues
facing healthcare. Likewise, providers, suppliers, and payers (pharmacy benefit managers
[PBMs] and insurance companies) had to set aside work being done on issues such as
drug pricing reform to address the pandemic. 2020 began with significant uncertainty
regarding the 6 questions posed to Forecast Panelists (FPs). The pandemic response,
coupled with election year politics, has layered additional complexity on the environment,
leaving pharmacy leaders with uncertainty as they navigate the future.
PBM PRICE TRANSPARENCY
There is growing interest in drug pricing reform at both the federal and state levels.
1
FPs were in general agreement that the trend of state government intervention to require
price transparency by PBMs will continue (Figure 4, item 1). However, it is worth
noting that price transparency reform is not limited to PBMs or drug costs. Hospitals
and insurers are also under significant pressure for price transparency, as evidenced
by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed rule issued at the end
of 2019.
2
Pharmacy leaders should continue to nurture relationships with government affairs
(GA) leaders in their health systems by scheduling regular meetings with GA representatives,
establishing a pharmacy advocacy platform, and advocating for comprehensive legislative
strategies that improve access to and affordability of prescription medications.
Figure 4 (Healthcare Financing and Delivery).
Forecast Panelists’ responses to the question, “How likely is it that the following
will occur, by the year 2025, in the geographic region where you work?”
LONG-TERM CONTRACTS FOR DRUG SUPPLIES
The past 3 years have seen a sea change in terms of contracting for multisource injectable
drugs. Group purchasing organizations (GPOs) and other entities have begun using long-term
contracts to assure supply of these critical medications. Seventy-five percent of
FPs believe that 50% or more of the generic injectable drugs used by health systems
in the future will be acquired through these long-term contracts (Figure 4, item 2).
This strategy could result in a much more stable supply chain for these products.
Pharmacy leaders should evaluate contracting opportunities in terms of cost, supply
stability, and risk of failure to supply. To mitigate the risk of shortages, a comprehensive
pharmacy supply chain strategy should include multiple channels for key products whenever
possible.
VALUE-BASED AGREEMENTS FOR SPECIALTY DRUGS
The survey item in this section of the Forecast that had the most FP agreement was
the statement “At least 25% of health systems will execute five or more value-based
contracts for specialty drugs” (Figure 4, item 3); 84% of FPs indicated this was either
very or somewhat likely. To date, most health plans and PBMs have implemented value-based
agreements (VBAs) with pharmaceutical manufacturers, albeit with limited success.
3
The lack of uptake of VBAs is multifactorial, but some of the barriers include concerns
with Medicaid “best price” (BP), clinical outcome definitions, and a process to track
patient outcomes over time. The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is attempting
to address some of these variables in its recent proposed rule that would change how
manufacturers calculate BP and average manufacturer price.
4
If finalized, the proposed rule could lead to states, payers, and health systems engaging
in more value-based purchasing contracts with pharmaceutical manufacturers. Additionally,
as health systems take on more risk under accountable care organization or similar
arrangements, pharmacy leaders should evaluate the use of value-based contracts to
improve clinical effectiveness of medication use.
CHARITY-CARE REQUIREMENTS FOR PRIVATE, NONPROFIT HOSPITALS
In the years leading up to 2020 there was growing interest in examining the financial
performance of health systems, executive compensation and the tax-exempt status of
hospitals and health systems.
5,6
In the 2020 Forecast survey, only 12% of FPs said it was very likely that federal
and state governments would strengthen charity-care requirements for private, not-for-profit
health systems. The pandemic response has resulted in significant short-term financial
pressures
7
for health systems while shining a light on the importance of maintaining the infrastructure
of our healthcare system. The combination of high public opinion of healthcare workers
and financial losses for health systems may temporarily reduce the likelihood of state
and federal government actions that would financially harm health systems. However,
regulatory action that will harm health systems has advanced, including proposed payment
reductions. The results of the 2020 national elections and pandemic response are likely
to have an impact on the likelihood that there will be specific legislative action
addressing the tax-exempt status of hospitals and health systems.
EXTERNAL PARTNERSHIPS FOR DRUG SUPPLIES AND ALTERNATE MEDICINE PROVIDERS
All participants in the pharmacy supply chain are compelled to provide value. Failure
to do so will threaten the very existence of any participant as nontraditional entrants
continually survey the environment looking for opportunities to disrupt the market.
That is the backdrop for 2 questions in this year’s survey. The first question is
about the likelihood that external partnerships could provide alternatives to the
traditional wholesale distribution of drugs. FPs were split in their views about the
prospects of this happening, with 56% believing it likely and 44% believing it unlikely
(Figure 4, item 5). The second question addresses the notion that alternate providers
of medicines will capture 25% of the consumer prescription market; 78% of respondents
thought that this is at least somewhat likely to occur (Figure 4, item 6). That more
than half of the FPs responded affirmatively to both questions is enough to raise
questions about the possibility of significant disruption among the primary players
in the pharmacy supply chain: manufacturers, PBMs, wholesalers, GPOs, and pharmacies.
Health systems are challenged now more than ever to provide revenue-generating services
through innovative channels that may require external partnerships with nontraditional
health companies and even potential competitors. A majority of survey respondents
believe that this may occur with external partners that provide alternatives to traditional
wholesale drug distribution services. The advent of gene-based therapies over the
past few decades has spurred disruption in the traditional pharmacy supply chain.
Pharmacy leaders should remain vigilant with respect to external arrangements and
the impact of partnerships on other elements of the supply chain. Additionally, continued
attention should be paid to the value health-system pharmacy is bringing both financially
and clinically. Patient care should remain the hallmark of strategic planning for
pharmacy leaders. Consideration of the potential for competitors to displace some
or all aspects of a health-system pharmacy operation can be an effective tool for
long-term planning.
STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PRACTICE LEADERS
Establish and foster close relationships with health-system government affairs teams,
jointly establishing a pharmacy policy platform that can be used to advocate at the
state and national levels. Pharmacy leaders should proactively influence the overall
health-system policy platform whenever possible and be poised to react whenever necessary.
Carefully monitor trends in the drug contracting and fulfillment environment. Pharmacy
supply chain leaders should partner with health-system supply chain leaders to jointly
assess unique contracting opportunities. Multiple supply channels for critical drugs
should be established whenever possible.
Acquire a deep understanding of the financial performance and position of the healthcare
system. Fostering strong relationships with system finance leaders allows pharmacy
leaders to establish plans that are in tune with the organization and increases the
likelihood of success.
Exhaustively evaluate every aspect of the pharmacy enterprise with respect to value
offered to the patient and the system. Consider alternative ways that the service
or product might be offered by competitors (internal and external) in the future.
Disclosures
The authors have declared no potential conflicts of interest.
References
1.
PBM Watch. Pharmacy benefit manager legislation. Accessed July 17, 2020. http://www.pbmwatch.com/pbm-legislation.html
2.
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Transparency in coverage proposed rule
(CMS- 9915 –P) (Nov 15, 2019). Published Nov 15, 2019. Accessed July 17, 2020. https://www.cms.gov/newsroom/fact-sheets/transparency-coverage-proposed-rule-cms-9915-p
3.
American Health & Drug Benefits. Value-based agreements in healthcare: willingness
versus ability. Accessed July 17, 2020. http://www.ahdbonline.com/issues/2019/september-2019-vol-12-no-5/2843-value-based-agreements-in-healthcare-willingness-versus-ability
4.
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Medicaid program; establishing minimum
standards in Medicaid state drug utilization review (DUR) and supporting value-based
purchasing (VBP) for drugs covered in Medicaid, revising Medicaid drug rebate and
third party liability (TPL) requirements. Published June 19, 2020. Accessed July 17,
2020. https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/06/19/2020–12970/medicaid-program-establishing-minimum-standards-in-medicaid-state-drug-utilization-review-dur-and
5.
LaPointe
JA
. Top-earning non-profit hospitals offer less charity care. Revcycle Intelligence.
Published February 18, 2020. Accessed July 17, 2020. https://revcycleintelligence.com/news/top-earning-non-profit-hospitals-offer-less-charity-care
6.
Advisory Board. There’s a big gap in how much charity care nonprofit hospitals provide,
a study finds. Accessed July 17, 2020. https://www.advisory.com/daily-briefing/2020/02/20/charity-care
7.
American Hospital Association. New AHA report finds losses deepen for hospitals and
health systems due to COVID-19. Published June 2020. Accessed July 17, 2020. https://www.aha.org/issue-brief/2020-06-30-new-aha-report-finds-losses-deepen-hospitals-and-health-systems-due-covid-19
Patient Safety: New Frontiers for Pharmacists
David W. Bates, M.D., Professor of Medicine, Harvard Medical School, and Chief of
General Internal Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA
James M. Hoffman, Pharm.D., M.S., Chief Patient Safety Officer and Associate Member,
Pharmaceutical Sciences, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN
Address correspondence to Dr. Hoffman (james.hoffman@stjude.org).
INTRODUCTION
Improving patient safety has been a longstanding priority for which pharmacists are
ideally suited to lead. Pharmacists widely share this focus on patient safety, but
the maturity of medication-use safety efforts varies across hospitals and health systems.
Compared to other areas of focus for patient safety, the medication-use system in
health systems consistently marches toward greater complexity through new knowledge,
drug approvals, new technology, the supply chain, reimbursement pressures, and many
other factors. Therefore, even pharmacists with the most sophisticated programs always
have new opportunities to improve medication safety through a clear vision, effective
use of the formulary system, staff support, and leadership.
PREVENTABLE HARM FROM MEDICATION USE: AN INTRACTABLE PROBLEM OR LIMITED VISION?
Among Forecast Panelists (FPs), 82% responded that it was very or somewhat unlikely
that preventable harm from medications will become nonexistent or rare (Figure 5,
item 1). Thus, pharmacists may accept a level of harm from medications as inevitable.
This view contrasts with a vision of “zero preventable harm” that is a goal in a growing
number of health systems.
1
Some hospitals put great emphasis on zero harm through communications to staff and
the public. Proponents of this approach often point to success in reducing hospital-acquired
infections, such as central line-associated bloodstream infections (CLABSI) and catheter-associated
urinary tract infections (CAUTI) through checklists, bundles, and other interventions.
However, while the reductions in CLABSI and CAUTI are great accomplishments for patient
safety, these conditions do not have the same complexity or constant change of the
medication-use process. The “zero harm paradigm” represents a convenient mechanism
to rally attention to harm reduction, and it can prompt new thinking to propel an
organization’s patient safety efforts forward. However, an unrelenting focus on zero
harm (or “absolute safety”) also brings risks, including demoralizing clinicians,
not being measurable, and placing too much focus on harm to the detriment of holistically
considering all risks to patient care.
2
FPs may have been considering these nuances in answering this item.
Figure 5 (Patient Safety).
Forecast Panelists’ responses to the question, “How likely is it that the following
will occur, by the year 2025, in the geographic region where you work?”
Ultimately, a bold vision for patient safety must be articulated with clear and measurable
deliverables, but we do not believe this requires a zero harm message, especially
for medication use, which is constantly changing. Pharmacists must succinctly articulate
the multifaceted risks for patient harm from medications to physicians, other clinician
colleagues, and health-system leaders. Patient safety vision must be coupled with
pragmatic action and meaningful measurement to understand progress, and patient safety
measurement needs further development.
3
The evaluation of safe medication use must retain a holistic view across systems and
processes to identify and mitigate risks that will ultimately reduce patient harm.
EVALUATING NEW MEDICATIONS AND MAINTAINING THE INTEGRITY OF THE FORMULARY SYSTEM
The underlying evidence used by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to approve
medications has evolved to use fewer data and new study designs.
4
Comparative data are often unavailable, and passage of the 21st Century Cures Act
in 2016 has enabled FDA approvals using a range of data from observational studies.
5,6
The global COVID-19 pandemic has brought pressure to use a variety of new therapies
with little or no evidence from randomized studies. With Forecast survey data collected
just as the COVID-19 outbreak was developing, 59% of FPs thought it was very or somewhat
likely that health systems’ pharmacy and therapeutics committees will devote significantly
more time assessing the safety and efficacy of new medications because of relaxed
FDA requirements for product approval (Figure 5, item 2). The formulary system represents
a mechanism to promote safe and appropriate medication use across a health system,
and these functions must remain focused on its fundamental role to review the evidence
for new medications.
7
Health systems should continue to use the formulary system to provide oversight of
opioid prescribing patterns and support treatment for opioid use disorder. The risk
for opioid misuse is clear, and FPs thought it was likely these issues would be addressed
at the health-system level (Figure 5, item 3) and through changes in federal regulations
(Figure 5, item 4).
STAFF RESILIENCE AND SAFE PATIENT CARE
Most FPs (76%) thought it was somewhat or very likely that in 75% of health systems,
the pharmacy department will have an active program to support the well-being and
resiliency of its staff (Figure 5, item 5). Supporting staff is central to patient
safety. If staff well-being is not supported, then staff cannot provide the safest
possible patient care. Many staff well-being programs already exist in health systems,
including some that emanated from pharmacy departments.
8
Appropriately, these efforts are maturing from a relatively narrow initial focus on
specific patient events to broader staff support resources to address many aspects
of working in healthcare. With the manifold pressures from the COVID-19 pandemic,
the need for these resources has only grown.
NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR LEADERSHIP
FPs were optimistic that in at least 50% of health systems, a pharmacist will be in
an enterprise-wide patient safety leadership role, with 77% believing it very or somewhat
likely (Figure 5, item 6). This observation is consistent with the 2020 Pharmacy Forecast,
in which FPs indicated it was likely that pharmacy leaders would take on broader roles
by supervising additional departments. Building on broad clinical knowledge, leadership
skills, and experience collaborating across the health system to enact change, several
pharmacists have successfully taken on such roles. Further, pharmacists have the fundamental
knowledge of the medication-use system, with improving medication safety as a core
competency, which they can build upon to embrace leadership in other aspects of patient
safety in health systems. Because the medication-use system crosses many disciplines
and involves a variety of aspects of a health system’s operations, it is natural for
a pharmacist patient safety leader to systematically consider every aspect of a patient
safety event or proactive risk assessment.
STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PHARMACY LEADERS
Advocate for a pharmacist to be placed in an organization-wide role with corresponding
authority to provide strategic leadership for medication use and patient safety.
Identify new medication safety priorities by asking provocative questions on how harm
can be eliminated, and convert these ideas into strategic plans with defined objectives
and a corresponding measurement approach.
Ensure pharmacists are actively engaged in setting health-system patient safety priorities
to identify medication safety goals and be positioned to make contributions to patient
safety beyond the medication-use process.
Develop new patient safety measures and monitoring strategies to identify medication
safety risks and reduce patient harm from medications.
Use the formulary system to systematically identify the quality and quantity of evidence
used to approve new medications and implement additional monitoring, conditional approval,
or other steps when evidence is deemed to be inadequate.
Regardless of the specific support resources available in your health system, remain
vigilant and consider specific actions for the well-being needs of pharmacy team members
in the strategic planning process.
Disclosures
Dr. Hoffman currently serves on the AJHP Editorial Advisory Board. Dr. Bates has declared
no potential conflicts of interest.
References
1.
Chassin
MR
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Loeb
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2013; 91(3):459-90. doi:10.1111/1468-0009.12023
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2020; 29(1):4-6. doi:10.1136/bmjqs-2019-009703
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. Two decades since To Err Is Human: an assessment of progress and emerging priorities
in patient safety. Health Aff (Millwood).
2018; 37(11):1736-43. doi:10.1377/hlthaff.2018.0738
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Darrow
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. FDA approval and regulation of pharmaceuticals, 1983–2018. JAMA.
2020; 323(2):164-76. doi:10.1001/jama.2019.20288
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25788510
Scope of the Pharmacy Enterprise: From Volume to Value
John A. Armitstead, M.S., RPh, FASHP, System Director of Pharmacy, Lee Health, Fort
Myers, FL
Dorinda Segovia, PharmD, MBA, Vice President Pharmacy Services, Memorial Healthcare
System, Hollywood, FL
Address correspondence to Dr. DiPiro (jtdipiro@vcu.edu).
The movement from volume to value reimbursement models in healthcare systems has been
driving the pharmacy enterprise to focus on preventive medicine and accountability
of healthcare outcomes far beyond the traditional role of hospital-based acute care.
1
Payment models are moving toward valuing effective medication use versus traditional
models of paying for medication consumption.
2
Pharmacists are patient care experts with skills to lead in this challenge of providing
optimal medication value.
ACCESS TO PHARMACISTS
Most (76%) Forecast Panelists (FPs) agreed that pharmacists will likely play a significant
role in addressing the scarcity of primary care services (Figure 6, item 1) in remote
and underserved areas. Coverage limitations or no insurance and service availability
remain an issue for Americans, and healthcare access remains at the top of the healthcare
agenda.
Figure 6 (Scope of the Pharmacy Enterpise).
Forecast Panelists’ responses to the question, “How likely is it that the following
will occur, by the year 2025, in the geographic region where you work?”
Many health systems have already achieved improved patient outcomes by placing pharmacists
in primary care settings to provide comprehensive medication management, integrate
care plans, and educate patients and providers on medication use, including adherence.
3-5
Expanding the pharmacist’s role in primary care is a natural step to meet care access
needs of underserved populations. Legislation in many states grants pharmacists provider
status, permitting collaborative practice agreements and making pharmacists’ leadership
in access expansion possible. The integrated presence of pharmacists as part of clinician
teams will continue as the roles solidify, funding sources are identified, and commercial,
state, and federal payers reimburse for these population health services.
REDEPLOYMENT OF ACUTE CARE POSITIONS
FPs were split (57% to 43%) on the likelihood of acute care pharmacist positions being
redeployed to areas such as ambulatory care, population health, specialty pharmacy,
and home care (Figure 6, item 2). However, health systems will likely continue to
expand their services in non-acute-care areas, and more pharmacists will practice
in these areas.
To what extent will pharmacist positions come from reductions in force in acute care
vs being new ambulatory care hires? This will depend on the extent of contraction
in acute care services or how extensively acute care pharmacists integrate transitions
of care activities into their roles.
The emphasis on chronic disease state management by payers across the continuum of
care, coupled with population health initiatives and pressures to move away from treating
acute-episodic events will result in expansion of pharmacists in ambulatory settings.
6
With expansion in ambulatory care roles, workforce adjustments will be required, including
justifying positions and/or expansion of technician roles to meet the demands of the
pharmacy enterprise.
BEYOND MEDICATION RECONCILIATION
A large majority of FPs (77%) agreed that the pharmacy staff will reconcile medications
during care transitions (Figure 6, item 3). An accurate and comprehensive medication
history upon admission is essential to the medication reconciliation processes, and
its benefits are well documented in the literature.
7,8
One indisputable success of ASHP’s Practice Advancement Initiative (PAI)
7
is identification of the vital role pharmacy professionals have in assuring medication
reconciliation accuracy across all care transitions.
The pharmacy team is uniquely positioned to facilitate transitions through all levels
of care, thanks to their knowledge of drug and dosage form availability, formulary
mechanics, patient medication assistance programs, and access to the claim adjudication
process. Assuring that drug therapy plans are accurate and understood by the patient
are critical in avoiding medication-related readmissions.
DOCUMENTATION OF CARE
Availability of pharmacist documentation of patient care for all members of the healthcare
team was rated as likely or somewhat likely to occur by 90% of FPs (Figure 6, item
4).
Pharmacists’ drug therapy and plan of care assessments designed to ensure safe and
effective use of drugs must be available to all healthcare team members. Although
there is a well-established interdisciplinary documentation standard within the inpatient
hospital environment, there are opportunities for pharmacists’ transparent documentation
of a patient’s care. The keys to success in pharmacist documentation are developing
methods by which pharmacists’ therapeutic and monitoring recommendations can be made
available in the comprehensive record.
TEAM CARE FOR COMPLEX MEDICATION MANAGEMENT
There was wide agreement by FPs (Figure 6, item 5) that pharmacists will routinely
care for patients with complex medication-related needs, with accountability for patient
care outcomes. Complex medication management is clearly an opportunity for pharmacists
to achieve optimal patient health outcomes. The pharmacist’s role in complex medication
management should include a wide range of patient services focused on medications,
including ongoing patient assessment, development of a personalized comprehensive
medication-use plan, care coordination, medication and disease state monitoring, and
wellness and preventive services.
CREDENTIALING AND PRIVILEGING
Seventy-five percent of FPs agreed that credentialing and privileging in health systems
will increase (Figure 6, item 6). Privileging will be critical as specialized education,
training, and competencies are and continue to be required in advanced practice. The
credentialing and privileging processes must ensure that pharmacists being deployed
to advanced care settings have attained the qualifications to practice in those settings.
9
Pharmacists providing advanced services, with coinciding responsibility and accountability
for patient out-comes, must be properly credentialed and privileged to perform the
advanced practices.
STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PHARMACY LEADERS
Actively develop a strategic plan to pursue opportunities for pharmacy enterprise
expansion into ambulatory sites and telehealth settings including underserved and
remote areas, where access to a pharmacist can be assured for all patients.
Plan for acute care pharmacists to provide transitions of care medication services
connecting patients with their ambulatory care pharmacists, including in self-care,
community pharmacy, home care, and specialty pharmacy, as well as skilled nursing
facility settings, where access and affordability to medication therapy can be assured.
Provide medication reconciliation services to all patients in the health system to
assure that medication accuracy is assured.
Assure that documentation of pharmacists services are in the patient electronic healthcare
record and that such documentation is available to all healthcare providers across
the continuum of care.
Develop comprehensive medication management services by pharmacists for patients in
high-risk and chronic disease states in which medication management is a key for optimal
patient outcomes.
Define the roles of the pharmacist in ambulatory and population health management
while assuring that pharmacists have the credentials, privileges, and competencies
to provide advanced care.
Disclosures
The authors have declared no potential conflicts of interest.
References
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Schenkat
D
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. Multihospital health systems: growing complexity of pharmacy enterprise brings opportunities
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The Pharmacy Workforce: The Need to Recalibrate Supply and Demand and Leverage Prescribing,
Technology, and Pharmacy Technicians to Advance the Practice of Pharmacy
Melanie A. Dodd, Pharm.D., Ph.C., BCPS, FASHP, Associate Dean for Clinical Affairs
and Associate Professor, The University of New Mexico College of Pharmacy, Albuquerque,
NM
Mollie Ashe Scott, Pharm.D., BCACP, CPP, FASHP, Regional Associate Dean and Clinical
Associate Professor, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, Asheville Campus, and Clinical
Associate Professor, UNC School of Medicine Division of Family Medicine, Asheville,
NC
Address correspondence to: Dr. Dodd (mdodd@salud.unm.edu).
INTRODUCTION
Pharmacy workforce challenges include oversupply of pharmacy graduates, federal provider
status recognition, and variable requirements for education and credentialing of pharmacy
technicians, while opportunities for advancing practice include expanding state-level
provider recognition, improving reimbursement for clinical services, and increasing
the number of states with advanced practice pharmacist licenses.
PROVIDER STATUS AND PHARMACIST PRESCRIBING AUTHORITY
Sixty-eight percent of Forecast Panelists (FPs) indicated that it is very or somewhat
likely that at least 50% of states will legally recognize pharmacists as healthcare
providers (Figure 7, item 1). Pharmacists have long provided clinical services on
interprofessional teams, delineating the value proposition. However, replication and
scalability are limited by lack of federal provider recognition and reimbursement,
negatively impacting patient access.
Figure 7 (Pharmacy Workforce).
Forecast Panelists’ responses to the question, “How likely is it that the following
will occur, by the year 2025, in the geographic region where you work?”
The Social Security Act specifies which healthcare professionals are providers, allowing
them to bill for Medicare Part B services. Currently, pharmacists are not federally
recognized providers. Thirty-seven states have some degree of provider status, and
nearly 150 state provider status bills were introduced in 2019.
1,2
State-level provider recognition creates opportunities for health-system leaders to
expand ambulatory care services. Leaders should establish policies and procedures
that support credentialing and privileging, clinic support, billing, and electronic
documentation. While there is positive momentum for state-level provider status, additional
federal and state advocacy by health-system leaders is needed.
Sixty-three percent of FPs indicated that it is very or somewhat likely that at least
25% of ambulatory care patients will have their medications managed by a pharmacist
with prescribing authority in the next 5 years (Figure 7, item 2). Pharmacist prescribing
authority is state specific and includes patient-specific collaborative practice agreements
(CPAs) (most restrictive), population-specific CPAs, statewide protocols, and independent
prescribing authority (least restrictive).
1
Pharmacists in California, Montana, New Mexico, and North Carolina can seek advanced
practice licenses with additional training.
There is a limited body of data that quantifies pharmacists’ role as prescribers in
management of ambulatory care patients. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
data from 2017 indicate that 6,670 pharmacists submitted 857,832 Medicare Part D prescription
claims.
3
While this supports the FP respondents’ prediction, health-system leaders should establish
metrics to quantify and qualify the impact of prescribing pharmacists. Health systems
should continue to expand ambulatory care residency programs, particularly in states
where they are required for prescribing.
PHARMACY TECHNICIANS
Seventy-eight percent of FPs predicted that it is very or somewhat likely that technicians
will have advanced roles in at least 75% of health systems (Figure 7, item 3). In
addition, 58% of FPs predicted that at least 50% of health systems that employ technicians
in advanced roles will require an associate’s or bachelor’s degree (Figure 7, item
4). State technician training, licensure, and certification requirements vary from
high school diplomas to formal training programs to national certification.
4
An ASHP survey of pharmacy practice managers revealed 56% of organizations offer career
advancement opportunities for technicians, suggesting that health-system leaders place
value on advanced roles.
5
As pharmacists’ scopes of practice expand, new opportunities for advanced technician
roles and leadership will emerge. Given the high percentage of FPs who expect technicians
to assume advanced roles over the next 5 years, the emergence of defined career paths
for technicians that include standardized training programs, national certification,
and mandatory state registration and/or licensure is likely.
AUTOMATIC VERIFICATION
Auto-verification (AV) occurs when a medication order is activated without pharmacist
review based upon established criteria. Clinical support tools within computerized
prescriber order entry (CPOE) systems evaluate prespecified medications that have
a strong safety record for appropriate dosing, potential drug interactions, patient
allergies, and risks for adverse events. AV is expected to decrease the amount of
time that pharmacists spend reviewing medication orders and increase patient access
to medication management and transitions in care services. Efficiencies that are created
with AV implementation allow increased emphasis on high-risk patient populations.
Forty-six percent of FP respondents agreed that it is very or somewhat likely that
AV will be used to authorize 25% of medication orders in nearly all health systems
(Figure 7, item 5). A 2019 national survey reported that 62% of US hospitals incorporate
AV into CPOE systems.
6
The ASHP Practice Advancement Initiative 2030 advises that pharmacists should use
health information technologies to advance their role in patient care and population
health.
7
Barriers to expansion of AV include concerns about patient safety outcomes, regulatory
issues, lack of national standards, and the limited body of literature. Health-system
leaders should evaluate use of AV to establish standards and determine their impact
on direct patient care services.
DOCTOR OF PHARMACY GRADUATES
Seventy-one percent of FPs agreed that it is very or somewhat likely that the number
of pharmacy graduates will decrease by 20% in the next 5 years (Figure 7, item 6).
Workforce outlook and educational debt burden have decreased admission applications
and class size in schools and colleges of pharmacy. During the past 15 years, the
historical pharmacist shortage has transitioned into oversupply.
8
The number of pharmacy graduates will decline in the next 5 years, which may recalibrate
supply and demand. Alignment of the number of graduates with residency availability
could accelerate ASHP’s goal to ensure new pharmacy practitioners complete postgraduate
training as a minimum credential. Schools dependent on tuition revenue will tighten
their belts and seek new revenue sources to remain financially viable. Budget cuts
or school closures could negatively impact health systems’ partnerships with schools
on experiential education, shared faculty, and cosponsored residency programs. Finally,
small and rural hospitals could experience additional workforce challenges. Health-system
leaders should strategically evaluate the impact of declining graduates on their financial
health, staffing models, and quality care.
STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATIONS FOR PRACTICE LEADERS
Promote recognition of ambulatory care pharmacists as primary care providers within
your health system.
Ensure your pharmacy enterprise creates advanced practice pharmacist productivity
and revenue generation benchmarks.
Assertively lead your organization in development of ambulatory care operational systems
that (a) promote credentialing, billing, coding, and documentation for pharmacist
providers; (b) achieve financial sustainability; (c) align with state/federal requirements
for prescribing pharmacists.
Create advanced technician roles and leadership positions. Redefine minimum requirements
for advanced technician roles to include undergraduate degrees and completion of ASHP/ACPE-accredited
education programs.
Partner with other disciplines to evaluate outcomes of AV adoption.
Collaborate with academic partners to address the impact of decreasing pharmacy student
numbers on experiential education, shared faculty, and residency programs.
Disclosures
The authors have declared no potential conflicts of interest.
References
1.
Adams
AJ
,
Weaver
KK
. The continuum of pharmacist prescriptive authority. Ann Pharmacother.
2016; 50(9):778-784.27307413
2.
National Alliance of State Pharmacy Associations. Nearly 150 state provider status
bills in 2019. News. Published June 13, 2019. Accessed September 10, 2020. https://naspa.us/2019/06/nearly-150-state-provider-status-bills-in-2019/
3.
Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Medicare provider utilization and payment
date: part D. Accessed September 10, 2020. https://data.cms.gov/Medicare-Part-D/Medicare-Provider-Utilization-and-Payment-Data-Par/psut-35i4/data
4.
Pharmacy Technician Certification Board (PTCB). State regulations and map. Accessed
September 10, 2020. https://www.ptcb.org/resources/state-regulations-and-map
5.
American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Pharmacy technician career overview.
Accessed September 10, 2020. https://www.ashp.org/Pharmacy-Technician/About-Pharmacy-Technicians/Pharmacy-Technician-Career-Overview
6.
Pederson
CA
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Schneider
PA
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MC
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DJ
. ASHP national survey of pharmacy practice in hospital settings: prescribing and
transcribing—2019. Am J Health-Syst Pharm.
2020; 77(13):1026-1050.32573717
7.
American Society of Health-System Pharmacists. Practice Advancement Initiative (PAI)
2030 recommendations. Accessed September 10, 2020. https://www.ashp.org/Pharmacy-Practice/PAI/PAI-Recommendations?loginreturnUrl=SSOCheckOnly
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Lebovitz
L
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. Trends in the pharmacist workforce and pharmacy education. Am J Pharm Educ.
2019; 83(1):article 7051.30894775