So, I had something else planned for the blog today. With the recent coverage, I thought this would be an excellent time to bring up our profession.
As a whole.
Where we are.
Where we are headed.
How we can fix our profession to best serve our patients and use our skills to the highest of our abilities.
I have been in pharmacy for 10+ years and it has changed SIGNIFICANTLY during that period, not necessarily for the good of our profession or our patients.
Some of us may work in areas that don’t feel impacted and I would encourage us to link together and support our colleagues who are struggling to take care of the patients they are devoted to in the way they wish they could. I would encourage us to stand with our colleagues who can’t get away for a bathroom break, who don’t get a meal break, who aren’t allowed a stool to sit on, who aren’t able to take the time to counsel a patient who could benefit, who aren’t able to have a simple conversation with a recent widower who feels lonely to make them feel connected for the day, who are struggling to meet metrics that aren’t designed to serve our patients or other healthcare providers, who see the local Chik-Fil-A staffed better than their pharmacy, who feel like they are doing 5+ things at a time and struggling to do them well because of the constant interruptions. We see you.
How can we improve this? How can we put healthcare and patients first again? How can we better support other healthcare providers and the healthcare system as a whole? I don’t have the answers, but I think it’s time we start the discussion and continue it until we have some resolution.
Thoughts.
Obtain provider status to be able to give patients access to and to allow us to bill for the valuable, expert care we are able to provide.
Provide medication therapy management through primary care, specialty services and/or local pharmacies.
Get involved in collaborative practice agreements in states that allow and work to expand in other states. Some ideas for collaborative practices:
Anticoagulation
Diabetes
Hypertension
Hyperlipidemia
Pain Management
Heart Failure
Asthma/COPD
Smoking Cessation
Travel Vaccinations
Improved billing and financial margins for filling prescriptions. Profit to pharmacies.
Adequate staffing to allow time for MTM, collaborative practice, vaccine clinics, and counseling.
Adequate staffing to handle the volume of incoming phone calls.
Adequate staffing to run a drive thru lane.
Adequate staffing or dedicated pharmacy hours that allow for meal breaks and bathroom breaks.
Time to connect to patients.
Time to follow up on patient specific inquiries and insurance issues to reduce or prevent escalations BEFORE they happen.
Fair wages for support staff, technicians and pharmacists.
Incentives for continuing education, certifications, and participation in local, state and national pharmacy organizations to keep staff engaged and knowledgeable.
Recruit, train and hire leaders in pharmacy that are PHARMACISTS.
Patient safety support and action from the state Boards of Pharmacy and pharmacy organizations.
Bye bye metrics. Remove metrics. They don’t belong in healthcare.
“At the end of the day, at the end of the week, at the end of my life, I want to be able to say that I contributed more than I criticized.”
-Brene Brown