Clinical pharmacy services in a rehabilitation facility

Clinical pharmacy services provided by pharmacists to patients in a rehabilitation facility through a contracted arrangement with a local hospital are described. Two staff pharmacists from a community hospital oversee the drug-distribution process and provide clinical services at a 40-bed private rehabilitation facility. During alternate four-week periods, each pharmacist works at the rehabilitation facility; the other four-week period is spent in traditional drug-distribution activities at the hospital. The hospital is reimbursed for clinical services separately from drug-distribution services; by keeping records of the time spent in clinical activities at the facility, the pharmacists have obtained increased reimbursement for these services since initiation of this program. Clinical services provided by pharmacists at the institute include patient education, drug-therapy monitoring and consultation, drug information activities, and management of drug therapy in selected patients. In 1982, pharmacists provided 230 drug-therapy consultations to physicians and received referrals for drug-therapy management of 47 patients on warfarin sodium, 46 on antihypertensive drugs, and 27 on phenytoin sodium. The provision of a variety of clinical pharmacy services to patients in a rehabilitation facility offers a unique and professionally rewarding practice.