Integrating Psychiatric Pharmacist Services Into a Rural Clinic Helps Patient Care, Staff Satisfaction

Integrating a psychiatric pharmacist into a rural internal medicine outpatient clinic a couple of days a week significantly improved patient care and positively affected provider satisfaction, according to study findings published in the Journal of the American Pharmacists Association.

“One-fifth of all adults in the United States have a mental health disorder. Over 60% of rural Americans live in a mental health provider shortage area,” wrote corresponding author Bennett Doughty, PharmD, clinical assistant professor at the Binghamton University School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Johnson City, New York, and coauthors. “However, psychiatric pharmacist integration has not been widely utilized to full capacity at many rural, private institutions.”

The study looked at the impact of adding a psychiatric pharmacist to a rural, internal medicine clinic an average 2 days per week over a period of nearly 4 years. Primary care providers referred patients to the psychiatric pharmacist who, in consultation with the primary care provider, made recommendations for pharmacotherapy, monitoring, and follow-up timing.

Study findings revealed gains in several areas after psychiatric pharmacist integration. Researchers reported statistically significant improvements in guideline-driven treatments as well as patient outcomes per Patient Health Questionnaire-9 scores compared with standard care.

Provider time and health care utilization also improved, according to study authors.

“A total of $29,600 is estimated to have been billable for pharmacist services,” wrote researchers, “and clinic staff perceptions of pharmacist integration proved positive.”

Reference:
Doughty B, Fink A, Sellaouti B, Stasko J, Surdi H, Prabhu S. Assessment of an integrated psychiatric pharmacy practice within a rural internal medicine clinic. J Am Pharm Assoc. Published online September 26, 2022. doi:10.1016/j.japh.2022.09.014