Although the clinic has moved in the right direction, there are still several patients who have not had any improvement since being referred to the clinic. These patients have refractory asthma (ie, step 6) and are not able to be treated at this facility, continued poor medication adherence, or do not have asthma at all. These patients will be flagged and will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.
In conclusion, the clinic has begun to achieve what it was intended to do: improve asthma control, reduce patient burden on ED staff, and decrease financial burden to the facility. Additionally, there is improvement in the satisfaction of the asthma care and a trend toward the patients’ perception of asthma control agreeing with medical guidelines. These findings further support the use of pharmacists in the role as provider for the management of chronic diseases.
Acknowledgements
Shail Mehta, MD, is an internal medicine provider at the NNMC. He attended the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine in Pennsylvania and completed a residency in internal medicine at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Dr. Mehta is certified with the American Board of Internal Medicine.
Erica Markovitz, MD, is an internal medicine provider at the NNMC. She attended the University of Miami School of Medicine in Florida and completed a residency at the University of Michigan. Dr. Markovitz is certified with the American Board of Internal Medicine and the American Board of Pediatrics.
Thad Koppenhafer, PharmD, is the director of pharmacy at the NNMC and the area pharmacy consultant for the Navajo Area of the IHS. He is a member of the American Society of Health-Systems Pharmacists.
CAPT Mark Strong, PharmD, MT (ASCP) is a senior supervisory pharmacist with the U.S. Public Health Commissioned Corps and is assigned to the IHS. He is currently the chief of outpatient pharmacy services at the NNMC.
CDR Clint Krestel, PharmD, is the assistant chief of pharmacy responsible for Inpatient Pharmacy Services. His professional memberships currently include the American College of Clinical Pharmacy, the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, and the Commissioned Officers Association.
Author disclosures
The author reports no actual or potential conflicts of interest with regard to this article.
Disclaimer
The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Federal Practitioner , Frontline Medical Communications Inc., the U.S. Government, or any of its agencies. This article may discuss unlabeled or investigational use of certain drugs. Please review complete prescribing information for specific drugs or drug combinations—including indications, contraindications, warnings, and adverse effects—before administering pharmacologic therapy to patients.
