Purpose: An integrated clinical and specialty pharmacy practice model for the management of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) is described.
Summary: Specialty medications, such as disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) used to treat MS, are costly and typically require special administration, handling, and storage. DMTs are associated with high rates of nonadherence and may have associated safety risks. The University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System developed an MS pharmacy practice model that sought to address the many challenges of coordinating care with multiple entities outside the health system. Several key features of the integrated model include a dedicated clinical pharmacist on the MS specialty team, an integrated specialty pharmacy service, direct access to the electronic medical record, and face-to-face interaction with patients. Through the active involvement of the neurology clinical pharmacist and an onsite specialty pharmacy service, targeted assessments and medication and disease education are provided to the patient before DMT initiation and maintained throughout therapy. In addition, the regular point of contact and refill coordination encourages improved compliance, appropriate medication use, ongoing safety monitoring, and improved communication with the provider for quicker interventions. This fosters increased accessibility, convenience, and patient confidence. Improving patient outcomes--the priority goal of this service model--will be assessed in future planned studies. Through this new practice model, providers are empowered to incorporate specialty medication management into transitions in care, admission and discharge quality indicators, readmissions, and other core measures.
Conclusion: An integrated pharmacy practice model that includes an interdisciplinary team of physicians, nurses, and pharmacists improved patient compliance with MS therapies.