Tech participates in patient care-focused hospital pilot

A group of pharmacy residents recently conducted a pilot project at Mount Sinai Hospital (MSH) in Toronto to determine the feasibility of a patient care-focused, unit-based pharmacy technician practice model. “With expanding pharmacy services and scopes of practice, there exists an opportunity for pharmacy technicians at Mount Sinai Hospital to leverage this expanded scope,” wrote co-authors Clarence Lam, Gagan Grewel, Camilla Ho, Rita Lad, Angelo Panganiban, Yasmin Rajmohamed and Christinne Duclos. A four-week pilot was implemented on a general internal medicine unit at MSH. One pharmacy technician performed Best Possible Medication Histories (BPMHs), investigated missing medications, and supported patients’ transitions of care. The average daily time spent on pilot activities was 2.6 hours of a 7.5-hour workday. Within this time, 93% was spent on BPMHs, 4% on missing medications and 3% on other activities. No time was spent on transitions-of-care activities. Feedback from pharmacists indicated that 83% were strongly satisfied or satisfied with completion and quality of BPMHs, while the pharmacy technician expressed satisfaction in being involved with patient care. The study concluded that “the implementation of a unit-based pharmacy technician practice model at MSH was feasible based on time spent on observed technician activities. Further engagement of pharmacy technicians with nurses and pharmacists can build stronger professional relationships and increased collaboration, such as communication with pharmacists after multidisciplinary rounds to identify patient discharge.” For more information, visit Development and Implementation of a Unit-Based Pharmacy Technician Practice Model: A Pilot Project at Mount Sinai Hospital | TSpace Repository (utoronto.ca). Read: PTCB introduces regulatory compliance certificate for techs

Tech participates in patient care-focused hospital pilot

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