Shields Health Solutions to Present Clinical Research Posters on Integrated Specialty at NASP Annual Meeting & Expo and Impanel Health System Partners during Pre-Conference Hospital Workshop

NASP is a keystone event for insights into specialty pharmacy care

STOUGHTON, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Shields Health Solutions (Shields), the premier specialty pharmacy accelerator in the country, announced today that it will host a session titled “The Evolution of Specialty Pharmacy” at the Hospital Health System Workshop during the National Association of Specialty Pharmacy (NASP) Annual Meeting & Expo in Kissimmee, Fla. In addition, Shields pharmacists will present eight posters at the conference that address treating a range of specialty disease states, reducing the cost of specialty care and how integrated health systems can compare performance through reporting.

The NASP Annual Meeting & Expo gathers thought leaders and health care veterans for interactive learning, sharing best practices and partnership building in an interactive setting. NASP provides continuing education programs to pharmacists and other healthcare professionals working in specialty pharmacy. Its members include specialty pharmacies, integrated health systems, pharmaceutical and biotechnology manufacturers, healthcare payers, group purchasing organizations (GPOs), wholesale drug distributors, and technology and other vendors.

“The NASP conference is a yearly industry highlight and we are excited to share insights from Shields partners during the hospital/health system workshop,” said Erin Hendrick, Executive Vice President of Commercial Partnerships at Shields. “By sharing the evolution of specialty pharmacy from the perspective of Shields health system partners, we hope to elevate the conversation around where specialty pharmacy has been, where it is and where we need to go.”

Shields’ speaking session will take place during the Hospital and Health System Workshop on Monday, September 19 from 10:30-11:30 a.m. ET. Tim Affeldt, PharmD, Vice President, Specialty and Infusion Operations at M Health Fairview will moderate the session, which will shed light on how specialty pharmacy capability can evolve to create more comprehensive patient care. The panel will include:

• Gary Kerr, PharmD, MBA, Chief Pharmacy Officer at Baystate Health
• Lisa Blanchette, PharmD, MHA, Sr. Director of Infusion and Specialty Pharmacy Services at Novant Health
• Brian Lounsbery, RPh, Director, Specialty and Compounding Pharmacy at Avera
• Lesli Goebel, PharmD, Lead Pharmacist at Billings Clinic Specialty Pharmacy

Please see below for details about Shields clinical research poster presentations:

Topic: Clinical Outcomes Evaluation and Reporting
Authors: Kristen Ditch, PharmD; Martha Stutsky, PharmD, BCPS; Carolkim Huynh, PharmD, CSP; Christopher Barr; Shreevidya Periyasamy, MS, HIA; Kate Smullen, PharmD, CSP, MSCS; Jennifer L. Donovan, PharmD
Summary: The purpose is to describe a systematic approach to defining and reporting COs for multiple disease states across multiple health system specialty pharmacies.

Topic: Communities of Practice for Specialty Pharmacies
Authors: Kuwan Blake, BA, CPhT; Dawn DiPasquale, CTDP, CPhT
Summary: The purpose of this initiative is to describe the structure and functionality of the Communities of Practice (CoP) program and to demonstrate its impact on specialty pharmacy operational metrics.

Topic: Impact of an Ambulatory Clinical Pharmacist Program on Coverage Determination Outcomes for Specialty Oncology Medications
Authors: Young Kim, PharmD; Martha Stutsky, PharmD, BCPS; Kate Smullen, PharmD, CSP, MSCS; Jennifer L. Donovan, PharmD
Summary: The purpose was to evaluate the impact of an ambulatory clinical pharmacist program on third-party coverage determination outcomes for specialty oncology medications in cancer patients managed by a HSSP.

Topic: Factors Influencing CDK4/6 Inhibitor Adherence
Authors: Martha Stutsky, PharmD, BCPS; Shreevidya Periyasamy, MS, HIA; Kate Smullen, PharmD, CSP, MSCS; Andrew Argeros; Navya Clement, PharmD, BCPS, CSP; Diane Wolfe, RPh; Jennifer L. Donovan, PharmD
Summary: Several publications describe adherence and persistence with oral oncolytics, but there are limited reports analyzing factors associated with adherence to CDK4/6 inhibitors. The primary objective is to identify demographic factors impacting adherence to CDK4/6 inhibitors.

Topic: Pharmacy Liaison-Managed Care Model in Diabetes
Authors: Martha Stutsky, PharmD, BCPS; Kristen Ditch, PharmD; Shreevidya Periyasamy, MS, HIA; Lillian Piz, MS; Carolkim Huynh, PharmD, CSP; Nicholas Bull, PharmD; Jennifer L. Donovan, PharmD; Gary Kerr, PharmD, MBA; Bill McElnea, MPP
Summary: The objective was to describe an observational analysis of a pharmacy liaison-managed care model for patients with diabetes and to measure its impact on medication access, adherence, and changes in hemoglobin A1C (HbA1c).

Topic: Integrated Specialty Model Lowers Pharmacy Expense
Authors: Martha Stutsky, PharmD, BCPS; Dale Fasching, PharmD, MBA; Carolkim Huynh, PharmD, CSP; Jennifer L. Donovan, PharmD; Brian S. Smith, PharmD
Summary: The purpose was to evaluate pharmacy and medical expenses among non-oncology specialty pharmacy patients in a HSSP group care model versus a national Network using a national health insurer de-identified database of 36 million Medicare Advantage members.

Topic: Impact of an Embedded Rheumatology Pharmacist
Authors: Sefa Kploanyi, PharmD, BCPS; Kate Smullen, PharmD, CSP, MSCS; Martha Stutsky, PharmD, BCPS; Jennifer L. Donovan, PharmD
Summary: The aim of this project is to evaluate the impact of a pharmacist’s involvement on coverage determination outcomes, medication access, and provider satisfaction for a rheumatology practice affiliated with an integrated Health System Specialty Pharmacy.

Topic: Pharmacist Impact in a Multiple Sclerosis Clinic
Authors: Mekala Paparian, PharmD; Kate Smullen, PharmD, CSP; Martha Stutsky, PharmD, BCPS
Summary: The objective was to demonstrate the ambulatory clinical pharmacist (ACP) impact in facilitating MS medication access on prior authorization (PA) turn-around-times (TAT), medication appeal and PA approval rates, and clinic satisfaction scores.

About Shields Health Solutions
Shields Health Solutions (ShieldsRx) is the premier specialty pharmacy accelerator in the country. The Shields Performance Platform, an integrated set of solutions, services and technology, is intentionally designed to elevate payer and drug access for specialty pharmacies, elevate health outcomes for complex patients, and elevate growth throughout the entire health system. As the foremost experts in the health system specialty pharmacy industry, Shields has a proven track record of success including access to over 80 percent of all limited distribution drugs (LDDs) and most (health insurance) payers in the nation; and a clinical model proven to lower total cost of care by 13%. In partnership with more than 70 health systems across the country through national-scale collaboration, Shields has a vested interest in delivering measurable clinical and financial results for health systems. For more, visit our blog and follow us on social media, @ShieldsRx, LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube.