New York University Medical Center's pilot "Epo-Depot" program: a win-win for patients and health care

Therapy associated with treatment-related anemia continues to be of great concern for health care providers. Patient satisfaction, patient adherence, and growing insurance reimbursement concerns related to Epoetin alpha therapy for anemia initiated the development of a nursing-led process improvement team at New York University (NYU) Medical Center. Multiple patient groups were identified and treated for anemia with Epoetin alpha through the guide of a standardized pathway providing a convenient and effective treatment plan. The treatment delivery had to be consistent with institutional reimbursement requirements while avoiding significant cost to the patient. Patient populations diagnosed with HIV anemia, HIV oncology, presurgical anemia, and medically complex anemia can now receive appropriate ambulatory treatment. This article describes the formation of the "Epo-Depot" and the logistics involved to service these patients with anemia.