Impact of an Oncology Clinical Pharmacist Specialist in an Outpatient Multiple Myeloma Clinic.

INTRODUCTION

Improvements in cancer treatment and supportive care, as well as the approval of oral chemotherapy medications over the past decade, have resulted in an increasing number of cancer patients being treated in outpatient settings. Transitioning cancer treatments to the outpatient setting places greater emphasis on proper medication counseling and optimal management of adverse effects. We therefore evaluated the clinical and financial impact of an oncology clinical pharmacist specialist in an interdisciplinary multiple myeloma clinic by using a validated scoring tool.

METHODS

The oncology clinical pharmacist specialist was available for consult by the multiple myeloma clinic staff. The pharmacist may be consulted for any medication-related inquiry. On the basis of the consult, the pharmacist categorized interventions into 12 predefined intervention categories.

RESULTS

Implementation of a clinical pharmacy specialist into a multiple myeloma clinic over 39 clinic days resulted in 241 patient consults and 474 interventions made by the pharmacist. The most frequent interventions made by the pharmacist were medication teaching (n = 97), dose adjustments (n = 82), and medication reconciliation (n = 63). The value of interventions made by the pharmacist during the study period was $189,441, with a predicted annual value of $757,764.

CONCLUSION

The addition of an oncology pharmacist to an outpatient multiple myeloma clinic can improve clinical and financial outcomes.