Systematic review of medication synchronization in community pharmacy practice

Michael Patti; Chelsea Phillips Renfro; Rachael Posey; Gabrielle Wu; Kea Turner; Stefanie P Ferreri

doi:10.1016/j.sapharm.2018.11.008

Systematic review of medication synchronization in community pharmacy practice

Res Social Adm Pharm. 2019 Nov;15(11):1281-1288. doi: 10.1016/j.sapharm.2018.11.008. Epub 2018 Nov 16.

Authors

Michael Patti¹, Chelsea Phillips Renfro², Rachael Posey³, Gabrielle Wu¹, Kea Turner⁴, Stefanie P Ferreri⁵

Affiliations

¹ UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA.
² Department of Clinical Pharmacy and Translational Science, University of Tennessee Health Science Center College of Pharmacy, Memphis, TN, USA.
³ Health Sciences Library, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, William Rand Kenan Jr. Library of Veterinary Medicine at North Carolina State University, USA.
⁴ University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, USA.
⁵ Division of Practice Advancement and Clinical Education, UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA. Electronic address: stefanie_ferreri@unc.edu.

PMID: 30482457
DOI: 10.1016/j.sapharm.2018.11.008

Abstract

Background: Medication non-adherence costs more than 100 billion dollars in avoidable hospitalizations yearly. As a result, community pharmacies have implemented medication synchronization programs to improve adherence. One function of most medication synchronization programs is the alignment of all of a patient's medications to refill on a single date. While aligning refills is a standard aspect of most programs, other features vary making it difficult to identify which program components lead to improved adherence.

Objective: To review available literature and identify core components of medication synchronization and associated implementation techniques in community pharmacy.

Methods: A systematic review was performed by searching electronic databases for studies, reviews, and other sources for grey literature discussing medication synchronization in community pharmacy settings. Studies were eligible for inclusion if they documented the operation of medication synchronization program in a community pharmacy. A framework analysis identified common themes present in the literature.

Results: Twenty-six studies met criteria for final inclusion in this review. The majority of studies were retrospective cohorts, commentaries, and implementation guides. A wide variety of core components were included as part of medication synchronization program descriptions in the available literature. Several core components were identified as consistent throughout most of the published literature. These components were the identification and enrollment of patients, inclusion of a medication review and patient assessment, the alignment of refills, a formal process for preparation of medications, and the delivery of medications and other services.

Conclusions: This review identified several common themes of medication synchronization in the literature, which could help standardize medication synchronization within community pharmacy and facilitate future research. Themes found in this review provide the foundation upon which a consensus definition of medication synchronization can be built.

Keywords: Community pharmacy services; Medication adherence; Medication synchronization.

Publication types

Systematic Review

MeSH terms

Community Pharmacy Services*
Medication Adherence
Medication Therapy Management*
Pharmacies