Implementing a collaborative practice agreement for HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis in the primary care setting.

Area of Science:

• Pharmacy Practice
• Public Health
• Infectious Disease Management

Background:

• Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) is crucial for transmission reduction but faces underutilization.
• Pharmacists are key to expanding access to HIV PrEP through collaborative practice agreements (CPAs).

Purpose of the Study:

• To detail the creation of a CPA for a pharmacist-led HIV PrEP service in outpatient primary care.
• To track the growth and impact of this pharmacist-led HIV PrEP CPA service post-implementation.

Main Methods:

• Developed and implemented an HIV PrEP CPA within 7 general internal medicine (GIM) clinics at an academic medical center.
• Piloted pharmacist-led visits for HIV PrEP initiation and expansion.
• Analyzed electronic health record data and conducted retrospective chart reviews to assess prescribing patterns and referrals.

Main Results:

• Within 7 months, 122 patients received HIV PrEP from GIM PCPs.
• 34 patients (27.9%) were newly initiated on HIV PrEP.
• 53 referrals (43.4%) were made to the pharmacy team, with 5 clinics establishing services.

Conclusions:

• Successfully developed and implemented a pharmacist-led HIV PrEP CPA in Ohio.
• Demonstrated a viable model for increasing patient access to HIV PrEP therapy through integrated pharmacy services.