In last month’s blog post, we highlighted the common barriers that Sapna Patel, RPh, Director of Clinical Services at Mosaic Pharmacy Services, and her team manages on a regular basis. We continue our Q&A series this month with the most common observations that Sapna’s team frequently experiences while working to support better health outcomes for Mosaic members.
1. What are the most common meds you see de-prescribed and why is this so important for member health outcomes?
The most common medications we recommend to de-prescribe are CNS-active medications, Anticholinergic medications (ACH), and Protein Pump Inhibitors (PPI’s). Prolonged use of CNS-active medications in the elderly can be associated with cognitive decline and negative side effects like falls, dizziness, unsteadiness, and low blood pressure. It’s important for us to monitor members and taper the medication to avoid any withdrawal symptoms. Anticholinergic medications, especially within the elderly population, are often associated with side effects including dry mouth, urinary retention, blurred vison, and confusion. For PPIs, these medications are associated with the risk of fracture, electrolyte deficiency, and dementia.
CNS-active, Anticholinergic, and PPI’s medications can negatively affect health outcomes if used inappropriately. Unsafe use is commonly the result of multiple providers and a lack of coordinated care, because prescribers do not always have the member’s full medication list and a holistic view of the member’s entire medical history. Additionally, unsafe use can lead to unplanned care such as hospitalizations or ED visits. This is why it is so important for us to gather a full picture of each member’s regimen to then recommend changes and avoid adverse drug events.
2. What do you find are the most common regimen challenges for your members? How does Mosaic help?
The most common regimen challenge our members face is remembering to stay adherent to their medications. This could be because of negative medication side effects, unintentionally forgetting to take medications, a lack of understanding about their disease state, or cost.
We address these concerns at Mosaic by providing individual care to our members by listening to their concerns and working with them to help resolve any barriers to medication adherence. A Mosaic technician or pharmacist will talk with each member on a monthly basis to discuss any barriers to adherence before their next shipment goes out. Once the barriers are addressed, Mosaic will provide all of the patient’s maintenance medications on a monthly basis in multi-dose pouches according to time of day, including any inhalers, eye drops, insulin, or as-needed medications.
Learn more about how Mosaic’s tech-enablement is supporting higher-quality pharmacy experiences for our members; for more information on how Mosaic’s high-value pharmacy service model can improve health outcomes for your medically complex Medicare population, contact us today.