What is the medication management service?
Medication management service is provided by pharmacists where the process includes medication assessments and consultations via both face-to-face meeting and tele-communication, like phone calls, instant messaging and video conferences, depending on individual’s needs. All parties, including patients, their caregivers, their prescriptions and pharmacists may observe or reveal the service needs to initiate the service.
How could pharmacists provide medication management service?
By connecting the resources and services with both internal and external multidisciplinary teams from other social organizations, pharmacists could assess and review participants’ ability to manage their diseases and medications, and provide personalized recommendations on medicine use and lifestyle changes in order to optimise disease management. Follow-up and referrals to other healthcare disciplines, as well as support for caregivers would also be arranged as needed. For prescription-driven service, patient’s prescriptions would also be filled along with consultation.
Tele-service and pharmacists’ hotline would be offered to support individuals who are not able to attend the pharmacy due to any barriers and difficulties (e.g. fear of going out during the COVID-19 outbreak, poor mobility, packed daily schedule, etc. ).
Image courtesy of Health In Action Community Pharmacy via http://www.hia.org.hk/pharmacy/en/home-2/
Image courtesy of Lok Sin Tong Community Pharmacy via https://www.facebook.com/loksintongcommunitypharmacy/
Image courtesy of Philanthropic Community Pharmacy (St. James Settlement) via https://www.sjs.org.hk/en/project/charity-details.php?id=4 / https://charityservices.sjs.org.hk/charity/pharmacy
Image courtesy of Hong Kong Pharmaceutical Care Foundation via http://www.pcfhk.org/en/
Service targets
This service targets individuals who are:
- Taking high-risk medications (e.g. anticoagulant, antiplatelet and insulin); and/or
- Recently discharged from hospital and being prescribed with new medications or having any medication changes; and/or
- Taking more than five medications; and/or
- Suffering from chronic disease; and/or
- Willing to know more about their health and medication, including their caregivers.
Service aims and objectives
- To boost personal health literacy and enhance individuals’ self-improvement of health.
- To prevent and handle medication use issues and reduce the burden on public health system.
- To encourage appropriate use and coordinate healthcare and community resources to support holistic health care (e.g. to address psychosocial concerns of individuals).
Expected outcomes
- Individuals would be aware of personal and family benefits of good health and medication management, and their potential capability to manage their own health in order to encourage them to proactively join the decision-making for their health planning.
- Individuals would also acquire essential knowledge and skills to handle health- and medication-related issues, as well as to understand future health-related needs and make the best choice of life and healthcare services.