In recent years the VHAN Population Health Pharmacy Team has made it a priority to help patients, particularly ones with chronic illnesses, improve compliance to their prescriptions. This focus on medication adherence not only helps patients better manage their chronic diseases, but it also helps maintain consistent medical care during transitions and even reduce drug costs. It’s all part of the team’s efforts to produce better patient outcomes.

In recent months, demand for GLP1 (glucagon like peptide 1) receptor agonists has skyrocketed across the country, leaving providers inundated with prescription requests and patients frustrated with shortages. GLP1 agonists have an important place in obesity therapy. However, there are many unanswered questions about long-term side effects, cost-effectiveness and the duration of therapy. Unfortunately, current manufacturing cannot adequately meet the demand for both diabetes and obesity treatment. The VHAN Pharmacy Team has the following recommendations for navigating ongoing shortages.

Last month the Biden-Harris administration announced that the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) will end on May 11. This will have large impacts on Medicare ACO programs as well as TennCare recipients. Read the full article for a few items that members should be aware of.

VHAN’s RN Care Navigators are trained to help patients find their way through a complex health care system. But beyond untangling health care’s confusing details, these professionals also exhibit compassion for every patient they encounter, listening and showing genuine concern that’s as powerful as any prescription. In the case of one patient, the care management team’s ability to listen closely had potentially life-saving results.

VHAN’s Pamela Bruce, Director, Quality and Clinical Transformation, has joined the NAACOS Quality Committee. This committee evaluates quality initiatives and requirements related to ACOs, while focusing on the role of quality performance in population-based payment models. The NAACOS Quality Committee also works to develop and guide the NAACOS quality strategy as it relates to Medicare ACO models including the Shared Savings Programs and other payers with ACO contracts. Congratulations, Pam!

Coordinated care provides multiple touchpoints to ensure that no symptom goes untreated, and no patient falls through the cracks. At Vanderbilt Health Affiliated Network (VHAN), clinical pharmacists, social workers and nurse care navigators collaborate to deliver proactive, timely care to patients who need it most. 

For Population Health Clinical Pharmacist Lauren Cook, PharmD, BCPS, BCACP, VHAN’s cooperative approach means staying alert for complications that may arise unexpectedly with patients. Cook’s vigilance recently helped a 64-year-old blind patient avoid a potentially catastrophic health event.

Antibiotics prevent millions of deaths each year, fighting bacterial infections that could otherwise lead to serious complications or even death. But after years of overuse and inappropriate prescription, various bacteria have become increasingly resistant to antibiotics. To ensure optimum use of antibiotics and other antimicrobial drugs at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC), a team of physicians and pharmacists created the Vanderbilt Antimicrobial Stewardship Program (VASP). Learn more about the program’s successes in this case study.

At least 30% of outpatient-prescribed antibiotics are unnecessary, sometimes leading to ER visits for adverse drug events in patients of all ages. To increase the appropriate use of antibiotics and decrease the threat of antibiotic resistance, VHAN has launched a new Antibiotic Stewardship Program, focusing on Upper Respiratory Infections (URIs) in the first phase.

VHAN’s Care Management team often works with patients in the Diabetes Outreach Program to assist them in overcoming health obstacles that can stand in the way of positive outcomes. This was the case with a recent patient who was unable to complete the program due to difficulty having his labs drawn. VHAN Patient Service Specialist Lisa Fatzinger stepped in to offer direct communication and additional support, eventually helping him to complete the program successfully.