Clinical and economic effects of pharmacy services in a geriatric ambulatory care clinic

Pharmacy services were introduced in an established multidisciplinary geriatric ambulatory clinic. The pharmacist collaborated with primary care providers to optimize patients' drug regimens. Over 8 months there were 250 patient visits to the clinic. Traditional medical care was provided at 144 (57.6%) of these visits and traditional medical care plus pharmacist evaluation was provided at 106 (42.4%). The pharmacist identified 220 potential and actual drug-related problems. Acceptance of pharmacist-recommended changes in drug therapy was 98.6%. A mean reduction of 3.4 agents/patient was achieved in the intervention group (p<0.0001). Clinical outcomes of changes in drug therapy were neutral or positive in 99.5% of cases. Pharmacy services resulted in net savings of $7788 annually.