Development and validation of a systematic process for expansion of clinical pharmacy activities for comprehensive medication management in primary care within the Department of Veterans Affairs

Abstract

Medication misadventures can be considered either misuse, underuse, or overuse of medication therapy. With over 80% of Americans taking at least one medication per week and an increased percentage of hospital readmissions associated with a medication‐related problem, a strategy must be integrated that can ensure medications are optimized. Comprehensive medication management (CMM) is a patient‐centered process for ensuring medication optimization and improving patient health outcomes that is delivered by a clinical pharmacist working in collaboration with the patient and other health care providers. The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States and has strong clinical pharmacy practice in primary care. In an effort to increase the practice of the clinical pharmacy specialist delivering CMM, we outline a national implementation program conducted by the VA Pharmacy Benefits Management Services Clinical Pharmacy Practice Office to evaluate individual facility quality care needs, matched clinical pharmacist training needs, and the overall impact achieved with clinical pharmacist expansion of CMM.