Key Steps to Implementing CMM in Your Practice
Implementing CMM requires careful planning and collaboration between clinical pharmacists and pediatricians. Here are the essential steps:
- Establish Collaborative Practices: Set up CPAs between clinical pharmacists and pediatricians, including both primary care and sub-specialties like pediatric clinical pharmacology. This collaboration ensures that medication management is comprehensive and coordinated.
- Design Organizational Structures: Develop models and organizational structures that support shared electronic health records (EHRs) to streamline communication and documentation.
- Consistent Documentation: Ensure that clinical pharmacists consistently document CMM activities in the EHRs of CSHCN to maintain a comprehensive care record.
Benefits of Collaborative Practice Networks
Creating a network that integrates clinical pharmacists into pediatric care can provide several benefits:
- Improved Health Outcomes: By ensuring that medication regimens are optimized and monitored, children with complex medical needs can experience better health outcomes.
- Enhanced Family Experience: Families benefit from a coordinated care approach that reduces the burden of managing multiple medications and health care providers.
- Cost Reduction: Efficient medication management can lead to reduced healthcare costs by preventing adverse drug events and hospital readmissions.
Encouraging Further Research
While the benefits of integrating clinical pharmacists into pediatric care are clear, ongoing research is essential to refine these practices and adapt them to different healthcare settings. Practitioners are encouraged to participate in research studies and contribute to the growing body of evidence supporting CMM in pediatric populations.
To read the original research paper, please follow this link: Creating a Pharmacotherapy Collaborative Practice Network to Manage Medications for Children and Youth: A Population Health Perspective.
