Comprehensive Medication Review Completion in Medically Underserved Areas and Populations

Area of Science:

• Health Services Research
• Pharmacy Practice
• Telehealth

Background:

• Pharmacists play a vital role in addressing healthcare provider shortages, particularly in medically underserved rural areas/populations (MUA/P).
• Comprehensive Medication Reviews (CMRs) are a key service pharmacists provide to optimize medication use and patient outcomes.
• Limited data exists on the specific patient populations and interaction methods (direct patient vs. others) for CMRs in MUA/P.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the proportion of CMRs completed directly with patients (beneficiaries) versus other parties (e.g., caregivers, providers) in MUA/P.
• To identify predictors associated with CMR completion directly with beneficiaries in underserved populations.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of telehealth pharmacist-provided CMRs for adult patients in 2018.
• Chi-square tests were employed to compare proportions of CMRs completed with beneficiaries versus others.
• Multivariable logistic regression identified predictors of CMR completion directly with beneficiaries.

Main Results:

• Of 19,655 participants, 68% were female and 43% preferred Spanish.
• CMRs were more likely completed with beneficiaries aged 65-74, non-rural residents, and those with mental health prescriptions.
• CMRs were less likely completed with beneficiaries residing in rural areas, males, and those with medication nonadherence.

Conclusions:

• Telehealth pharmacist-delivered CMRs were successfully expanded within MUA/P.
• Further research is needed to understand the long-term impact of these interventions on health outcomes.