CVS/pharmacy Helping People on Their Path to Better Health Through Improved Medication Adherence
Guidance from health research points to the importance of a "pharmacy home"
Thousands of patients telling their "myCVS Pharmacist Story" on Facebook
PR NewswirePress Release: CVS/pharmacy – Mon, Mar 5, 2012 12:30 PM EST
Companies:
WOONSOCKET, R.I., March 5, 2012 /PRNewswire/ — CVS/pharmacy is informing pharmacy customers about the importance of a single "pharmacy home" for all of their prescriptions to help them on their path to better health. Guidance gained from CVS Caremark’s extensive health policy research with Harvard University and Brigham and Women’s Hospital has pointed to new ways customers can stay healthy and save money. For example, patients who use one pharmacy are more likely to stay on their medications; talking with your pharmacist can make you twice as likely to take your medications as prescribed; and taking medications as prescribed can lower health care costs by thousands of dollars annually.
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"These research-based facts are important for all patients taking medications to understand so they not only feel better, but also save money," said Papatya Tankut, RPh, Vice President Professional Pharmacy Services, CVS/pharmacy. "This is especially true for older patients who take two to three times as many prescription medications as those under 65. With the first Baby Boomers turning 65 – and 10,000 people in the U.S. turning 65 every day for the next eight years – this group is growing."
Having a "pharmacy home" for all of their prescriptions helps patients guard against potential drug interactions. It also encourages the development of a relationship with their pharmacist, who can counsel on the role of medications in treating their health conditions and the importance of staying on prescription therapies to improve their health and reduce their overall health care costs.
"A pharmacist in a face-to-face setting is the most effective health care professional at encouraging patients to take medications as prescribed," Tankut added. "When patients fill all of their prescriptions at CVS/pharmacy, our pharmacists are in a better position to help them on their path to better health."
CVS/pharmacy is inviting patients to share their stories of how CVS pharmacists have helped them stay healthy and save money. Now available at www.facebook.com/cvs, myCVS Pharmacist Story features thousands of comments from patients sharing experiences involving their own care, that of their children, or others for whom they are serving as caregivers.
CVS/pharmacy also provides customers with a number of services at www.CVS.com to help make it even easier to manage their medications, including online prescription ordering for pick-up at their local CVS/pharmacy or postal delivery to their home, text alerts when prescriptions are ready, a drug interaction checker, access to their prescription history, and prescription management tools for caregivers.
March 5, 2012
Walgreens Research Demonstrates How Face-to-Face Pharmacy and Take Care Clinic Programs Help Drive Better Health Outcomes, Including for Medicaid Patients
National Medical Director Robert London presents findings at 2012 IMS Managed Markets Services/Data Niche Conference
LAS VEGAS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
At the IMS Managed Markets Services/Data Niche Conference in Las Vegas on March 1, Walgreens National Medical Director Robert London, M.D., outlined how Walgreens research has demonstrated the ability of face-to-face pharmacy and Take Care ClinicSM programs to drive better health outcomes across a number of conditions and disease states. Dr. London also highlighted the benefits of these types of programs for the Medicaid population in particular.
In his presentation titled, “Leveraging a New Delivery Paradigm to Improve Quality in the Medicaid Population,” Dr. London discussed why traditional disease management efforts have shown to be lacking. He then highlighted the advantages that the new offerings provided by Walgreens have shown, including:
The ability of Walgreens face-to-face pharmacy and Take Care Clinic programs to improve Stars and HEDIS quality scores through customized patient education, increased patient access to clinicians and improved physician coordination.
The impact of pharmacist-led intervention programs for diabetes patients, which through face-to-face counseling have been found in a recent study to drive a statistically significant reduction in levels for A1C, blood pressure and LDL.
The impact of community pharmacy on influenza immunizations, where a recent retrospective study showed that in 2009-10, more than one-third of Walgreens flu immunizations were administered in pharmacies located in medically underserved areas (MUAs). In states with the largest MUAs, Walgreens provided up to 77 percent of its flu shots in MUAs.
The effect of pharmacists educating at-risk patients on the importance of receiving a pneumococcal vaccination. The study found 4.88 percent of the at-risk population immunized for pneumococcal disease, compared with 2.90 percent of at-risk patients in a traditional care benchmark population. The difference is an increase of 68 percent over benchmark.
“The power of pharmacist and nurse practitioner-led, face-to-face programs is clearly demonstrated,” said Dr. London. “Whether delivered through a community pharmacy, retail clinic or worksite health center, these interactions allow for an individualized approach to disease management while meaningfully improving health outcomes.
“The Medicaid population in particular stands to benefit from these types of outcomes-driven, face-to-face programs. With a huge expansion in the Medicaid eligible population looming, cost control becomes even more important. It will be vital to find solutions such as those offered by Walgreens to help improve patient health while ultimately reducing costs.”
Dr. London was named Walgreens national medical director in October 2011. Previously, he served as senior vice president of health care management at Anthem West, Chief Operating Officer at United Healthcare, Chief Medical Officer at the TriZetto Group and Chief Medical Officer at ikaSystems, Inc.
The three-day IMS conference took place Feb. 29 through March 2 and covered topics including health care reform, contracting, rebates and validation.
