Bridging the continuity: Practice-enhancing publications about the ambulatory care medication-use process in 2021

This article identifies, prioritizes, and summarizes published literature on the ambulatory care medication-use process (ACMUP) from calendar year 2021 that can impact ambulatory pharmacy practice. The MUP is the foundational system that provides the framework for safe medication utilization within the healthcare environment and was reimagined to focus on new innovations and advancements in ambulatory pharmacy practice. The ACMUP is defined in this article as having the following components: transitions of care, prescribing and collaborative practice, accessing care, adherence, and monitoring and quality. Articles evaluating at least one step of the ACMUP were assessed for their usefulness toward practice improvement.

A PubMed search was conducted in January 2022 for the year 2021 using targeted Medical Subject Headings keywords and the tables of contents of selected pharmacy journals were also searched, providing a total of 6,026 articles. A thorough review identified 86 potentially practice-enhancing articles: 10 for transitions of care, 9 for prescribing and collaborative practice, 20 for adherence, 17 for accessing care, 18 for monitoring and quality, and 12 for monitoring and medication therapy management. Ranking of the articles for importance by peers led to the selection of key articles from each category. The highest ranked articles are briefly summarized, with a mention of why each article is important. The other articles are listed for further review and evaluation.

It is important to routinely review the published literature and to incorporate significant findings into daily practice. This article continues a series of articles defining and evaluating the currently published literature around the ACMUP. As healthcare continues to advance and care shifts to ambulatory settings, the ACMUP will continue to be a crucial process to evaluate.