Retrospective Chart Review of Advanced Practice Pharmacist Prescribing of Controlled Substances for Pain Management...

The US Department of Health and Human Services' 5-point strategy to combat the opioid overdose public health crisis includes improved pain management. There is a shortage of adequately trained health care providers in pain management. Advanced practice pharmacists may be able to help fill that void. The objective of this project was to identify the impact of an advanced practice pharmacist with controlled substance prescriptive authority on morphine milligram equivalent dose (MME) and compliance with opioid risk mitigation.

In March 2020, a single-site retrospective chart review was conducted of patients who were prescribed controlled substances from July 1, 2018 to January 31, 2020. Patients received care through the outpatient Pharmacy Pain Clinic in-person or via telephone who were enrolled at the Harry S. Truman Memorial Veterans' Hospital in Columbia, Missouri, or associated outlying outpatient clinics. Patients were included if they were referred to the Pharmacy Pain Clinic and prescribed a Schedule II or III opioid medication. A 2-sided t test was conducted to compare MME, and a Fisher exact test was used to compare adherence to opioid risk mitigation.

Patients seen in Pharmacy Pain Clinic had a statistically significant reduction in MME from consult (93 MME) to discharge (31 MME) (P < .01). There was also a statistically significant (P < .01) improvement in use of opioid risk mitigation strategies, including urine drug screen, informed consent, naloxone, prescription drug monitoring program checks, and stratification tool for opioid risk mitigation dashboard reviews.

An advanced practice pharmacist with controlled substance prescriptive authority improved patient care with demonstrated statistically significant differences in MME and adherence with opioid risk mitigation from consult to discharge. Health care teams should look to add advanced practice pharmacists to their team as medication experts to deliver comprehensive medication management, which can include controlled substance prescribing and management.