Rx
ACCESS TO PHARMACEUTICALS
For facilities providing direct care to medically underserved populations, one of the primary obstacles to comprehensive services is accessing effective and affordable medications.
ACU recognizes that for many of our constituents, it is frustrating to finally get the patient into the clinic, to successfully diagnose the patient, and yet to discover that the patient is unable to afford or access the medication required to treat his or her diagnoses.
The mission of the ACU is to improve the health of underserved populations by enhancing the development and support of the health care clinicians serving these populations. As a part of its mission, ACU has compiled the following resources for implementing comprehensive pharmaceutical care:
INSTITUTE FOR SAFE MEDICATION PRACTICES
A new website is available for consumer medication safety information. This website will allow consumers to become educated about medication safety, understand their role in helping to prevent medication errors and apply the recommended strategies to reduce the risk of errors.
Website Content:
Approximately 200 original consumer-oriented articles from Safe Medicine (ISMP's consumer newsletter)
Current news and events
Consumer drug safety tools
Provide consumers with customized drug safety alerts, drug recalls, and news based on medications they list that they are taking
Provide updated print outs of personal medication list
Peer-reviewed analysis of errors and safety recommendations written by an editorial staff comprised of pharmacists, nurses, and physicians who are experts in the field of medication safety
Medispan consumer tools including:
Drug interaction detector
Drug information for all US drugs
Consumer MedGuides
Tablet/capsule graphics and identification guide
Partnership with iGuard
You can access the site HERE
DRUG LISTS:
Epocrates - For dosing, side effects, contraindications, interactions, manufacturer and retail pricing information
Electronic Orange Book - For generic equivalents available for brand name drugs. You can search for generic equivalents by searching by proprietary "brand" name," then searching again by using the active ingredient name. If other manufacturers are listed besides the "brand name" manufacturer when searching by the "active ingredient," they are the generic product manufacturers.
CLINICAL PRACTICE:
Clinical Trials - A registry of federally and privately supported clinical trials conducted in the United States and around the world. The registry lists a trial's purpose, who may participate, locations, and phone numbers for more details.
American Medical Association, Therapeutic Insights - A disease-specific CME newsletter with the latest treatment guidelines and b est practices and evidence-based therapy guidelines presented in case-study format.
Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality - A federal agency looks to improve the quality, safety, efficiency, and effectiveness of health care by conducting and supporting health services research.
MEDICATION ASSISTANCE:
Pharmaceutical company patient assistance programs
RxAssist
RxHope
Needy Meds
Partnership for Prescription Assistance
Generic drug programs, pharmaceutical manufacturer discount cards and resource lists
Disease specific assistance: Non-profit organizations assisting with the costs of medication
State specific information on health care coverage options
MEDICATION SAFETY
American Society of Health System Pharmacists - A site for assisting consumers with appropriate medication use.
Educate Before You Medicate - A program of the National Council on Patient Information and Education, offers reliable information about the proper use of medicines.
Institute for Safe Medication Practices - Helps healthcare practitioners keep patients safe and continues to lead efforts to improve the medication use process
INSTITUTIONAL LINKS
American Society of Health System Pharmacists
HRSA Pharmacy Services Support Center Safety Net Hospitals for Pharmaceutical Access
ADVOCACY
http://www.aarp.org/research/
http://www.consumerreports.org/health/bestbuy-drugs.htm
http://www.familiesusa.org/
http://www.medicareadvocacy.org/default.htm
http://www.medicarerights.org/
http://www.prescriptionaccess.org/
http://www.prescriptionproject.org/
http://www.worstpills.org/
RESEARCH, ISSUE GUIDES, TUTORIALS
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/publications_list.htm
http://www.hschange.com/
http://www.kff.org/rxdrugs/index.cfm
http://www.kaiseredu.org/topics_index.asp
http://www.kaiseredu.org/journal_index.asp
http://www.ncsl.org/programs/health/pharm.htm
http://www.raconline.org/info_guides/pharmacy/
http://www.ruralhealthresearch.org/topics/100000083/
MEDICARE
For charts and clear descriptions of Part D topics, see the Health Assistance Partnership project
For an understanding of Medicare basics
To calculate when an individual will reach the doughnut hole for coverage
To match medication needs with drug plans
For information on appeals of Part D plan decisions
For formulary information by plan
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