A National Survey of Hospice Administrator and Pharmacist Perspectives on Pharmacist Services and the Impact on Medication Requirements and Cost

Abstract

Symptom management at the end of life relies heavily on medications. For this reason, pharmacists are an ideal addition to the interdisciplinary hospice team (IDT). The aim of this study is to characterize the utilization of pharmacists in hospices from the hospice administrator and pharmacist perspectives and to determine the impact utilization has on per diem medication requirement and costs. Surveys were sent to 2824 hospice administrators and 658 pharmacists to obtain their perceptions on what clinical, administrative, and dispensing services were being performed. Responses were returned by 9.4% of administrators and 12.6% of pharmacists. The majority of administrators and pharmacists reported a mix of clinical, administrative, and dispensing responsibilities. Medication requirements and costs were not significantly impacted as the administrator’s perception of pharmacist clinical, administrative, or dispensing time increased from 0% to 100%.