Pharmacist Involvement in a Community Paramedicine Team.

BACKGROUND

Hospital readmissions have recently gained scrutiny by health systems as a result of their high costs of care and potential for financial penalty in hospital reimbursement. Mobile-integrated health and community paramedicine (MIH-CP) programs have expanded to serve patients at high risk of hospital readmission. Pharmacists have also improved clinical outcomes for patients during in-home visits. However, pharmacists working with a MIH-CP program have not been previously described. This project utilized a novel multidisciplinary Community Paramedicine Team (CPT) consisting of a pharmacist, paramedic, and social worker to target patients with heart failure at high risk of readmission to assist with coordination of care and education.

OBJECTIVES

This article describes the development of the CPT, delineation of CPT member responsibilities, and outcomes from pilot visits.

METHODS

The CPT visited eligible patients in their homes to provide services. Patients with heart failure who were readmitted within 30 days were eligible for a home visit.

RESULTS

A total of 6 patients were seen during the pilot, and 2 additional patients were seen after the pilot.

CONCLUSION

Imbedding a pharmacist into a CPT provides a unique expansion of pharmacy services and a novel approach to address hospital readmissions.