Grant Drug Information Pharmacist

Transitions of care: Taking action under ACA

Transitions of care projects in Ohio and Virginia are examples of health-system pharmacists partnering with colleagues in the community to improve patient care in alignment with financial incentives in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In these two projects, medication therapy management (MTM) plays a key role—a way of practicing pharmacy that is very much in line with the pharmacists’ visions for the profession.

In Circleville, OH, Berger Health System expanded pharmacy staff in early 2010 to provide a clinical support pharmacist who now does discharge medication reconciliation and outgoing patient counseling. Berger, which is eligible for the 340B Drug Pricing Program, began discussions last spring to develop a partnership with two community pharmacies to offer continuity of care. The community pharmacists will follow the discharged patients via MTM visits and have conference calls with the hospital pharmacists.

“The dedication of these resources is in direct response to government programs such as [ACA], specifically value-based purchasing, as well as the focus on improving readmission rates,” said Joseph Dula, PharmD, Regional Director of Clinical Services at Pharmacy Systems, Inc., a hospital pharmacy management and clinical consulting company that partners with hospitals, including Berger Health System.

CMS implemented a value-based purchasing program for hospitals in a  May 6 final rule under ACA  (section 3001). The program ties bonus payments for hospitals to their performance on quality measures or on their improvement in performance on quality measures; the bonus payments will be distributed in fiscal year 2013, and the measures for that round of payments are being taken from July 1, 2011, to March 31, 2012.

According to Dula, the project will improve patient safety by verifying a complete and accurate medication history on discharge (and any subsequent admissions); decrease medication errors when the pharmacist identifies potential issues during the discharge review process; improve medication adherence through face-to-face teaching and direct involvement in the education process; increase patient satisfaction scores specifically related to medications on patient surveys; and decrease readmission rates because patients will receive more frequent counseling on their medications once discharged.

Pharmacist.com | Transitions of care: Taking action under ACA

Transitions of care projects in Ohio and Virginia are examples of health-system pharmacists partnering with colleagues in the community to improve patient care in alignment with financial incentives in the Affordable Care Act (ACA). In these two projects, medication therapy management (MTM) plays a key role—a way of practicing pharmacy that is very much in line with the pharmacists’ visions for the profession.

In Circleville, OH, Berger Health System expanded pharmacy staff in early 2010 to provide a clinical support pharmacist who now does discharge medication reconciliation and outgoing patient counseling. Berger, which is eligible for the 340B Drug Pricing Program, began discussions last spring to develop a partnership with two community pharmacies to offer continuity of care. The community pharmacists will follow the discharged patients via MTM visits and have conference calls with the hospital pharmacists.

“The dedication of these resources is in direct response to government programs such as [ACA], specifically value-based purchasing, as well as the focus on improving readmission rates,” said Joseph Dula, PharmD, Regional Director of Clinical Services at Pharmacy Systems, Inc., a hospital pharmacy management and clinical consulting company that partners with hospitals, including Berger Health System.

CMS implemented a value-based purchasing program for hospitals in a  May 6 final rule under ACA  (section 3001). The program ties bonus payments for hospitals to their performance on quality measures or on their improvement in performance on quality measures; the bonus payments will be distributed in fiscal year 2013, and the measures for that round of payments are being taken from July 1, 2011, to March 31, 2012.

According to Dula, the project will improve patient safety by verifying a complete and accurate medication history on discharge (and any subsequent admissions); decrease medication errors when the pharmacist identifies potential issues during the discharge review process; improve medication adherence through face-to-face teaching and direct involvement in the education process; increase patient satisfaction scores specifically related to medications on patient surveys; and decrease readmission rates because patients will receive more frequent counseling on their medications once discharged.

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