Category: Federal Forum Posters
Purpose: COPD is one of the most burdensome disease states in the US, both from a cost and morbidity/mortality standpoint. It is also one of the highest risk disease states for hospital readmissions. Prior to the establishment of the pharmacist-managed COPD clinic described in this project, COPD at the James H. Quillen VA Medical Center (JHQVAMC) was managed by non-VA pulmonologists and primary care providers. In 2017, the JHQVAMC had an all-cause COPD readmission rate of 18%, which is around the national average. The primary purpose of this project is to evaluate the impact of a pharmacist-lead primary care COPD clinic.
Methods: This project will be the second phase of a quality improvement project that was started in 2017. Phase I of the project consisted largely of establishing the pharmacist-lead COPD clinic. Phase II of the project will focus on evaluation and improvement of the clinic. Within seven days of a hospitalization or emergency department visit for a COPD exacerbation, patients are scheduled for an appointment with a primary care clinical pharmacist. During each appointment, medication therapy is optimized based on GOLD guideline recommendations. Thorough education/counseling is provided on inhaler therapies and COPD action plan. Immunization and smoking statuses are assessed, and intervened on if warranted. A follow up visit is scheduled for 3 months following the initial visit. The primary endpoint being evaluated is all-cause 30 day hospital readmission rate following a hospitalization for a COPD exacerbation. Secondary endpoints that will be evaluated include CAT scores, smoking status, immunizations status, inhaler compliance, and rate of confirmed diagnosis by spirometry. Secondary endpoints will be evaluated using a before-after methodology.
Results: not applicable
Conclusion: not applicable
Russell Allison
– Pharmacy Resident, James H. Quillen VA Medical Center, Johnson City, TN135 Views