Research and Projects: AHRQ THQIT and SRD Portfolio

Minnesota

HIT-based Regional Medication Management Pharmacy System

Description:  Implements an interactive video-conferencing system at rural hospitals to provide continuing education for pharmacist and pharmacy technicians as well as a model for bedside verification of medication administration and medication bar coding; also evaluates structure, process, and outcomes related to improvement of patient safety and more effective patient medication management.

Abstract:  DESCRIPTION (provided by the applicant): The goals of this project are two fold: (1) To use health information technology to improve the safety and health of patients served by the participating hospitals by having professional pharmacy services available for medication consultation and dispensing 24 hours a day 7 days a week in 10-rural hospitals in Northeastern Minnesota and (2) To use health information technology to develop a shared pharmacy program in partnership with a tertiary care health care system that will make it economically possible for the rural hospitals to have the quality of professional services described in (1) available and sustainable. Specific grant activities to achieve these ends include staffing the pharmacy at St. Luke's so that after hours pharmacy and consultation are available 24/7, to have a staff of pharmacists who can provide coverage at the sites with a single pharmacist when that pharmacist is on leave, to complete the installation of an interactive video-conferencing system to provide continuing education for pharmacists and pharmacy technicians without having to leave their home sites, and to implement a model using three demonstration hospitals to have bedside verification of medication administration and medication bar coding in place. In addition, an Intranet based set of policies and procedures will be developed that can be adapted to each site, meeting standards equivalent to a Joint Commission accredited hospital. The University of Minnesota College of Pharmacy, Duluth, will provide the evaluation component for this project and will evaluate structure, process and outcomes related to improvement of patient safety and more effective patient medication management through the availability and use of professional pharmacist services for all medication administration.

Year 1 Funding:  $488,785

Estimated Total Funding:  $1,374,616

Principal Investigator:  Mark Schmidt

Applicant Institution:  Clouquet Community Memorial

City/Town:  Clouquet, Minnesota

State:  Minnesota

Grant Number:  UC1 HS14965

Category:  Implementation Grants (THQIT)

Thesaurus Terms:  health care facility information system, health care quality, health care service evaluation, patient care management, patient safety /medical error, pharmacy, regional medical planning, rural health, cost effectiveness, health care cost /financing, health care model, health care personnel education, health care policy, health disparity, interactive multimedia, method development, rural area, health services research tag

Project Start Date:  Sep 30, 2004

Project End Date:  Sep 29, 2007