In recent years, the older population and their caregivers have increasingly turned to long term care programs that allow them to age within their own communities, such as PACE centers. When evaluating options, potential participants consider a number of categories, including pharmacy services. So what are participants and their families seeking in a PACE pharmacy? Read on for a look at three criteria they’re evaluating:
PACE Pharmacy Evaluation Criteria #1: Medication Safety
For PACE participants and their families, safety is of the utmost concern. And with good reason. A 2012 study found that each year in the United States, the inappropriate use of medication — such as misuse of antibiotics or mismanaged polypharmacy — leads to approximately 10 million avoidable hospital admissions and 4 million emergency room visits. Participants and their families want a PACE pharmacy that prioritizes safety and helps ensure the appropriate use of medication. Grane Rx utilizes brightly colored boxes to enable a quick and easy distinction between everyday meds vs. meds that are taken on an as needed basis.
Grane Rx promotes medication safety in a number of ways, including:
- packaging automation for higher levels of accuracy
- medication consultation
- review of possible drug-to-drug interactions
- literacy tools to improve medication compliance
