Multidisciplinary practice advancement: Role of a clinical pharmacy specialist in a pediatric specialty clinic

PurposeTo describe clinical pharmacy specialists’ role in improving the use of specialty medications within a pediatric outpatient setting.SummaryThe outpatient pediatric specialty clinic (PSC) at the University of Iowa added a clinical pharmacy specialist to multidisciplinary teams within the PSC to focus on patient education, providing clinical recommendations, coordinating insurance approval, addressing barriers to adherence, and performing follow-up monitoring. Supplemental activities include coordinating between the electronic health record–integrated on-site specialty pharmacy and the PSC, assisting with quality improvement projects, developing policy revisions, negotiating access to specialty products, and answering medication information questions. Benefits in workflow efficiency, documentation, and revenue generation resulting from implementation of the pharmacist within the PSC have been identified by the clinic and the specialty pharmacy. The specialty pharmacy identified an increase in the rate of specialty prescription capture from 14% to 50%, leading to an increase in revenue for the health system. Within 12 months of the addition of the pharmacist to the team, an improvement in the rate of 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine administration to pediatric patients of 25.7 percentage points, medication adherence of >90%, and a 75% relative increase in appropriate hydroxychloroquine dosing were recognized. Due to the pharmacist’s impact on the PSC, a full-time pharmacist was added to the pediatric team to cover additional clinics, and 2 benefits investigation technicians were hired and funded by the PSC.ConclusionAn interdisciplinary team with an integrated pharmacist has facilitated sustainable improvements in medication access and adherence and clinical and quality measures, benefiting patients, the pediatric clinic, the specialty pharmacy, and the hospital organization.