1. What is the decision or change (e.g., clinical topic, practice guideline, system design, delivery of care) you are facing or struggling with where a summary of the evidence would be helpful?
People living with psychiatric disorders experience reduced life expectancy due, in part, to significant morbidity and mortality related to inadequately treated medical conditions, including those impacted by medications used to treat their psychiatric conditions. There has been increasing interest in team-based care such as the Collaborative Care Model (CoCM), shown to improve both access to care and outcomes of psychiatric disorders. However, it is unclear whether a team approach to care improves outcomes of medical conditions such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, and respiratory disorders for people with psychiatric disorders. We are interested in evidence that has evaluated team-based care as a method to improve medication-related outcomes of medical conditions in patients with psychiatric disorders. In particular, we are interested in a team that includes a clinical pharmacist who may be helpful in managing medical conditions, including those that are affected by psychiatric medications.
2. Why are you struggling with this issue?
Clinical pharmacists are integral members of the health care team in some large health-systems, community health centers, and the Veterans Affairs Health Care System. But many health systems and physician practices do not have a clinical pharmacist on the health care team. We are seeking evidence that evaluates the impact of including a clinical pharmacist on the health care team to determine if this could be a strategy to improve care and outcomes in patients with psychiatric disorders.
3. What do you want to see changed? How will you know that your issue is improving or has been addressed?
We want every person living with a psychiatric disorder to have access to clinical pharmacy services as part of a team approach to care to optimize inadequately treated medical conditions. We will know the issue has been addressed when there is an increase in the number of clinical pharmacists on health care teams. We also hope to see an improvement in the number of patients with psychiatric disorders achieving goals of treatment such as optimal blood glucose, blood pressure, and lipid levels.
4. When do you need the evidence report?
Saturday, September 30, 2023
5. What will you do with the evidence report?
We will use this evidence to inform employers, payers, and policy makers about the benefits of including clinical pharmacists on the health care team.
Supporting Documentation
Psychiatric Pharmacists Add Value To The Interprofessional Patient Care Team (PDF, 664 KB)
Optional Information About You
What is your role or perspective? Professional Society/Association
If you are you making a suggestion on behalf of an organization, please state the name of the organization - American Association of Psychiatric Pharmacists (AAPP)
May we contact you if we have questions about your nomination? Yes
