New study links your health to your access to a pharmacist
The dista
nce between you and your nearest pharmacy may be a factor in whether you are readmitted to the hospital within 30 days after discharge, according to a new study by Oregon State University and OHSU researchers.
The study, published by the Journal of American Pharmacists Association, looked at Medicare readmission rates and what researchers determined to be “pharmacy density,” capturing 507 pharmacies and 58 hospitals in Oregon. They found that hospitals in rural communities had lower pharmacy densities and higher hospital readmissions. The study measured density by looking at the number of pharmacies within a hospital’s primary service area, hours of operation and whether the pharmacy filled standard oral prescriptions for the general public.
Access to community pharmacists might help keep patients from returning to the hospital because local pharmacists are able to “assess medication adherence, provide education, and offer self-care recommendations,” researchers suggest.
Hospitals in Maine, Michigan and New York have opened outpatient pharmacies to give patients easier access to medications.
Medication “nonadherence” in the United States ranges from 25 percent to 50 percent, the study says.
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